Just a few days ago, Tamil Nadu BSP president K Armstrong was hacked to death by assailants. The state’s law and order situation is under fire for enabling such an incident. Armstrong’s murder is being called a political murder by many.
Political murders are not something uncommon in the state of Tamil Nadu. Several such incidents have occurred in the past as well in both the DMK and ADMK regimes. Here is a look at some of the politically motivated murders from the past in the state.
K Armstrong
K Armstrong, the Tamil Nadu state unit president of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), was brutally murdered on 5 July 2024 evening near Perambur in Chennai. He was attacked by a gang of six assailants while chatting with friends and supporters near his residence. The attackers, armed with machetes and sickles, threatened anyone who tried to intervene, causing Armstrong’s friends to flee. His family rushed to the scene upon hearing his cries, only to find him grievously wounded and lying in a pool of blood. He was quickly taken to a nearby private hospital where doctors pronounced him dead. Armstrong, a practicing advocate and councillor for Greater Chennai Corporation, championed the marginalized sections of society. Despite facing numerous criminal cases filed by the state police, he earned a strong reputation among Dalits for his contributions to their socioeconomic development. Armstrong’s popularity surged after he highlighted the welfare of Dalits in subaltern Chennai. He unsuccessfully contested against Chief Minister and DMK President MK Stalin in the 2011 Assembly polls. His advocacy for Dalit rights made him a target for non-Dravidian parties critical of his stance against atrocities committed against Dalits.
Jeyakumar Dhanasingh
The charred body of KPK Jeyakumar Dhanasingh, the District Congress president of Tirunelveli East, was discovered at his farm on 4 May 2024. His son, Karuthaiah Jafrin, reported him missing to the Uvari police two days earlier, expressing concern about his father’s absence since Thursday. Jeyakumar’s sudden and mysterious death has sparked widespread shock and outcry throughout Tamil Nadu, prompting leaders from various political parties to demand swift justice for what they described as Jeyakumar’s ‘murder’. Meanwhile, the police have launched an investigation to determine whether Jeyakumar’s death was a result of foul play or a tragic suicide.
KVK Samy
The initial shocking political murder in the state occurred in September 1956, when KVK Samy, a member of the DMK’s executive committee, was brutally killed in his hometown of Thoothukudi district. This incident was due to local political rivalry and happened a year before the DMK contested its first Assembly election. DMK founder CN Annadurai famously questioned whether they were living in the modern 1950s or a barbaric era following this first post-independence political murder in the state.
K Padmanabha
Although TN saw numerous low-profile political murders in the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, none shook the State as profoundly as the Padmanabha murder case in June 1990. Padmanabha, the leader of the EPRLF (Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front), and a dozen of his associates were brutally massacred in Kodambakkam by the LTTE, led by Vellupillai Prabhakaran.
Rajiv Gandhi
Shortly after TN had begun to recover from the shock of the first organized act of political violence beyond Sri Lankan borders, the Tamil Tigers once again shook Tamil Nadu, the peninsula, and the world in May 1990 by assassinating Rajiv Gandhi, who served as Prime Minister from 1984 to 1989. Rajiv’s assassination, the most high-profile political murder on Tamil soil to date, also laid bare the political and ideological fault lines within the State. This event, from near political banishment to renewed political relevance, significantly impacted the two major Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu.
Leelavathi Kuppusamy
A political murder in April 1997 strained relations between the DMK and CPIM when communist councillor Leelavathi Kuppusamy was killed by men linked to local DMK figures due to political rivalry. One of the accused, Marudu, was the brother of DMK functionary SR Gopi, an ally of M Karunanidhi’s elder son, MK Alagiri. Leelavathi had defeated the wife of one of the accused in a recent municipal election. Tensions flared further when some murder convicts were prematurely released during the 2006-11 DMK regime’s celebrations of Anna’s birth centenary. This incident soured relations between the parties, despite their collaboration in the 2004 Parliamentary elections under the United Progressive Alliance banner, which they swept.
Palani Baba
In Coimbatore that year, a chilling murder took place involving Palani Baba, a well-known Muslim leader, and public speaker who sought to unite all Jamaths in the State. He was brutally killed with 17 cuts as he left a friend’s residence in Pollachi. Five individuals associated with Hindu Munnani were sentenced to life imprisonment for his murder. Baba had previously been associated with both MGR and Karunanidhi.
MK Balan
During the AIADMK regime from 2001 to 2006, former MLA MK Balan became a subject of political discussion after he went missing during a morning walk in December 2001. His son had to file a habeas corpus petition in the Madras High Court to confirm that his father had been killed in a failed extortion attempt, leading to life imprisonment for 16 individuals involved.
Tha. Kiruttinan
In May 2003, another morning walk ended tragically for a prominent politician during the AIADMK regime led by J Jayalalithaa. This time, former DMK Minister Tha Kiruttinan was brutally killed by a motorcycle gang. More than a dozen individuals, including MK Alagiri, were arrested in connection with the murder. The case gained notoriety and took a dramatic turn following a change in government in 2006, leading to its trial being transferred to Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh. In 2008, Alagiri and 12 others were acquitted by the Chittoor trial court.
Aladi Aruna
During the AIADMK regime in December 2004, the prospect of a morning walk became a source of dread for politicians after former DMK minister Aladi Aruna was gunned down. Aruna, who later served as Law Minister during the 2006-11 DMK regime, and his friend Ponraj were fatally shot and hacked by a three-member gang while on their walk, though his assistant Socrates escaped unharmed. Eminent educationalist SR Raja was acquitted in the case, where the Tirunelveli session court initially sentenced two individuals to death. Raja later appealed successfully to the Supreme Court for acquittal, despite initial setbacks in the High Court due to a state government appeal.
‘Poondi’ Kalaiselvan
In November 2007, the delta region of Tamil Nadu was rocked by the murder of DMK district secretary ‘Poondi’ Kalaiselvan in Tiruvarur. Kalaiselvan, a powerful DMK functionary known for his ‘Ilaignar Padai’ (Youth Brigade) and personal bodyguards, was allegedly killed by a network of business and political rivals, including ‘Kurangu’ Senthil, once associated with gangster Manalmedu Sankar. The use of country bombs and sickles, typical in the region, marked the killers’ methods. The murder caused significant social unrest, leading to train cancellations between Tiruchy and Mannargudi. Six DMK ministers visited riot-affected Tiruvarur, the hometown of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, for Kalaiselvan’s funeral procession. The unrest was followed by the murder of former AIADMK Minister A Venkatachalam from Alangudi in October 2010.
KN Ramajayam
In 2012, during the AIADMK regime, KN Ramajayam, brother of KN Nehru, the current Minister of Municipal Administration, mysteriously disappeared while on a morning walk and was later found dead. Ramajayam, a prominent figure in the real estate sector, was honored by the ruling DMK for his exceptional event organizing skills with a 90-foot tall flag pole erected at a future zonal conference. Shockingly, this high-profile political murder remains an unresolved challenge for the state police to this day.
‘Pottu’ Suresh
On 31 January 2013, N Suresh Babu, known as ‘Pottu’ Suresh and a close associate of MK Alagiri, was fatally attacked on his way home after celebrating his boss Anjanenjan’s birthday. ‘Attack’ Pandi, another Alagiri confidant, was a prime accused in the case. During J Jayalalithaa’s reign, BJP State Secretary ‘Auditor’ Ramesh was allegedly killed by Panna Ismail, Police Fukrudeen, and Bilal Malik. Other notable victims include BJP leader Arvind Reddy in 2012 and Hindu Munnani leader Sasikumar in Coimbatore in 2018, highlighting a pattern driven by greed for political power and financial gain.
Auditor Ramesh
BJP State General Secretary ‘Auditor’ V. Ramesh was fatally attacked by an unidentified gang at his office in Maravaneri. He had dropped his family home and parked his car at his office on Third Cross. Neighbors discovered him in a pool of blood around 9:30 p.m. Police suspect the incident occurred then. BJP members protested demanding the arrest of the culprits, blocking roads, and pelting buses with stones. Tension gripped the area with heavy police presence. Ramesh, a chartered accountant, previously ran for Mayor of Salem City Municipal Corporation in 2011 and served as RSS State secretary from 1987 to 1992.
Suresh Kumar
In June 2014, Suresh Kumar, president of Hindu Munnani for Thiruvallur East district and originally from Kanyakumari, was tragically murdered. His killing was orchestrated by members of Al Ummah, an Islamic terrorist organization. In August 2014, police detained three individuals in connection with the crime following an investigation.
These are just some of the politically motivated murders that occurred in TN over the decades. There have been several murders of functionaries of various parties occurring infrequently.
(with inputs from DT Next)
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