Dravidian Model law and order is once again in the spotlight as the state of Tamil Nadu heads to polls.
In a shocking late-night attack near Chennai, a gang of allegedly intoxicated youth trespassed into a house in Minjur and brutally assaulted an 18-year-old college student who was studying alone, leaving her with serious injuries and battling for life in hospital.
The incident occurred around 10.30 pm on Tuesday, 14 April 2026, in Vallur’s Walaja Mosque Street under Minjur in Tiruvallur district. The victim, Sumaiya Fathima (18), a first-year B.Com student at a private college, was preparing for her semester examinations in a room on the terrace of her house when the attack took place.
According to police and local accounts, three youth under the influence of ganja entered the premises through a bushy rear pathway, climbed onto the terrace via a neighbouring house, and jumped into the victim’s terrace.
The accused then allegedly barged into the girl’s room. While investigators said the exact motive is yet to be ascertained and maintained that the accused were attempting robbery, residents in the neighbourhood alleged that the gang attempted to sexually assault the student.
When the girl raised an alarm upon seeing the intruders, the attackers allegedly turned violent and assaulted her with a machete in an attempt to silence her. She sustained deep cut injuries on her forearm, as well as multiple injuries to her head, hands, and legs, as reported in DT Next.
Hearing her screams, her parents Mohammed Askar and his wife Salma along with neighbours rushed upstairs. The attackers attempted to flee the scene, but one of them was chased down, caught by locals, and beaten before being handed over to the Minjur police.
The accused was identified as D Dillibabu (23), alias Rolex, who police said has a prior criminal case (damage to property). He was taken into custody after being subjected to mob assault, as reported in Tamil Samayam.
Subsequently, special police teams launched a manhunt and arrested three more accused on Wednesday, 15 April 2026, D Lokesh (22), T Muthamizh Selvan (24), and A Sidiq (19). All four were produced before a magistrate and remanded in judicial custody.
Police said a case has been registered and further investigation is underway. Dillibabu is being interrogated, and officers are probing the sequence of events and motive behind the attack.
During the investigation, it also emerged that the arrested youth had been posting Instagram reels featuring themselves with knives and other weapons, allegedly intimidating people in the locality.
Meanwhile, the injured student was rushed to a nearby private hospital, where she remains in critical condition. Doctors are administering intensive treatment as her condition continues to be described as life-threatening.
சென்னை அருகே மீஞ்சூரில் மசூதி தெருவில் செமஸ்டர் தேர்வுக்கு படித்துக் கொண்டிருந்த மாணவிக்கு வீடு புகுந்து அரி**ள் வெ***டு.. குடும்பத்தினர் அதிர்ச்சி பேட்டி#Tiruvallur | #Minjur | #Student | #House | #Attack | #PolimerNews pic.twitter.com/9jnVuyzYLI
— Polimer News (@polimernews) April 15, 2026
BJP leader Annamalai and ADMK chief Edappadi Palaniswami called out the inaction of the DMK government and also called for stringent action against the perpetrators.
திருவள்ளூர் மாவட்டம் மீஞ்சூர் அருகே வீட்டில் தனியாக இருந்த கல்லூரி மாணவியை குறிவைத்து கஞ்சா போதையில் இருந்த இளைஞர்கள் பாலியல் அத்துமீறலில் ஈடுபட்டு, பாதிக்கபட்ட மாணவி மீது கொலைவெறித் தாக்குதல் நடத்தியதில் மாணவி உயிருக்கு போராடி வருவதாக வரும் செய்தி மிகுந்த அதிர்ச்சியும் வேதனையும்… pic.twitter.com/8mNuIWEjb9
— Edappadi K Palaniswami-SayYEStoWomenSafety&AIADMK (@EPSTamilNadu) April 15, 2026
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