Auto driver’s murder triggers tension at Ervadi

Over 1,500 people block Ervadi– Nanguneri Road, demand arrest of assailants

In protest:A group of Muslims who came to the Collectorate in Turnelveli to submit a petition to M. Karunakaran on Tuesday seeking the arrest of those involved in the murder of auto driver Khaja Mohideen.— Photo: A. SHAIKMOHIDEEN

Tension prevailed in and around Ervadi in Tirunelveli district after an auto driver was murdered by unidentified persons on Monday night.

Police said that the auto rickshaw of S. Khaja Mohideen (25) ofErvadi Third Street was hired by a woman while he was waiting near the bus stand at around 8.30 p.m. As he failed to return home even after 10 p.m., his father Shahul Hameed tried to reach him through his mobile phone but in vain.

When Mr. Shahul, his relatives and a few auto drivers started searching for Khaja Mohideen, he was found murdered with three cut injuries on the neck and the head in a secluded place near Ervadi. When the police, led by Superintendent of Police V. Vikraman, reached the spot, they were prevented by relatives of the deceased and members of Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (TMMK) from sending the body for post mortem. After the SP assured them that the culprits involved in the murder would be arrested at the earliest, they allowed the transportation of the body to Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital.

On Tuesday, over 1,500 Muslims gathered in front of a mosque and blocked the Ervadi– Nanguneri Road, demanding the arrest of assailants within 24 hours and payment of Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the family of the deceased.

TMMK functionaries, led by S. Milleth Ismail, pacified the protesters, who gave up their agitation.

All business establishments in Ervadi downed their shutters on Tuesday as tension gripped the town and police were deployed in large numbers. Buses were operated through alternative routes.

During investigation, police found that there was difference of opinion among activists of Hindu Munnani, Christians and Muslims over taking out an idol procession during Vinayaka Chathurthi and it led to the attack on auto driver Muthukumar, a BJP functionary. Police had arrested four persons in this connection. In the wake of the murder, the police have picked up three persons from Pottaiyadi near Ervadi for interrogation.

Meanwhile, a group of Muslims, including TMMK general secretary T.S. Hameed, submitted a petition to Collector M. Karunakaran, seeking early arrest of the assailants and payment of Rs 10 lakh as compensation.