Pro-jallikattu protest: As cops intervene in Chennai, anti-socials have free run
Chennai: Monday's protest for jallikattu was marred by widespread violence choreographed by anti-social elements across the City as the police attempted to disperse the protesters from Marina Beach.
The first advisory, in black-and-white, to protesters to disperse from Marina beach since the start of the protest five days ago came from the city police to media houses at 4.18 am.
And 6.30 am onwards, the cops began removing women and children from the protest arena citing safety issues. All the roads leading to Kamarajar Salai were barricaded to prevent further influx of protesters in the beach, and the road was sanitised using mild force.
At around 7.30 am, groups of anti-social elements tried to crash into the barricades at multiple points including Pycrofts Road, and Avvai Shanmugam Salai, intersecting with Kamarajar Salai. The unruly mob brought down the barricades at Bells Road junction as well. At least two-dozen police officers including Additional Commissioner of Police C. Sridhar (North) and DCP (Washermenpet) S. Jayakumar were injured in the first wave of stoning against police personnel. A little later, around 10 am, the fringe rabid groups began organising roadblocks across the City.
At around 11 am, a mob of a dozen attacked the Ice House Police station and set fire to the vehicles parked in front of the police station. Violence then spread to Nadukuppam off Avvai Shanmugam Salai. In the meantime, a mob attacked vehicles of two IPS officers in Kilpauk, and set one on fire. The IPS officer's driver was given a sound thrashing for trying to evade the unruly mob. Anti-social elements began torching police vehicles across the City. There were instances of burning TNFRS vehicles as well.
The situation in M.K.B Nagar, in North Chennai, worsened with hundreds of arson incidents being carried out by the rioters. The violence continued late into the night and more police personnel were deployed in sensitive locations to quell the same.
