Off-duty police officer dies after scuffle with youths bursting crackers on Theni road

A Special Sub-Inspector of Police died after a scuffle with youths who were bursting firecrackers in the middle of a road in Theni on 8 November, Deepavali night. The Theni district police gave the details. Six of the seven accused have been arrested.

Senthilkumar, 55, who worked in the office of the Theni Deputy Superintendent of Police, was going home after duty in plain clothes at about 9.45 p.m., Superintendent of Police K. S. Praveen Gowtham told reporters. He saw the youths bursting crackers on the road at Samadharmapuram in Theni Allinagaram and alerted the police station.

What the police said

When he began taking photographs of the group, a scuffle broke out, the SP said. The police statement said he tried to stop one of the youths, and another pushed him with an elbow, so that he lost his balance and fell. He became unconscious.

A police team reached the spot within five minutes of his alert, the SP said. The officer was taken to the Theni Government Medical College hospital but died on the way.

Special teams arrested six of the accused, the SP said. Only one of them had a previous case against him. The SP did not answer a question on whether the accused had been drinking. The response of the accused was not available.

Response

Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced ₹40 lakh for the officer’s family on 9 November. He was cremated in Theni with a gun salute, in the presence of senior police officers, including Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) T. S. Anbu.

Asked whether the police could have done more to prevent such incidents on festival days, the SP said all officers were on duty on Deepavali and enough patrol vehicles had been deployed.

What’s next

The police are searching for the seventh accused.