Two persons suspected of having been involved in the murder of a history-sheeter in public on Tuesday were shot dead by police in Kancheepuram in the early hours of Wednesday when they reportedly attacked personnel of a special team who had attempted to nab them.
Two police personnel who suffered injuries in the incident have been admitted to a hospital. The deceased have been identified as Ragu, alias Raguvaran; and Hassan, alias ‘Karuppu’ Hassan. They were allegedly involved in the murder of history-sheeter Prabakaran, alias Saravanan of Kancheepuram.
The two suspects were taken to a hospital, where doctors declared them brought dead. Inspector General of Police (IG), North Zone, N. Kannan and Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Kancheepuram Range, R. Ponni visited the spot and conducted inquiries.
M. Sudhakar, Superintendent of Police, Kancheepuram, said: “We formed a special team to nab the suspects involved in the murder of Prabakaran on Tuesday. The team reached Indira Nagar following an information that two of the suspects were hiding there. The personnel surrounded them [Ragu and Hassan] at 5.30 a.m., and asked them to surrender. However, they attacked two police personnel with knives. A sub-inspector had to open fire in self-defence and to protect the others...”
On Tuesday, Siva Kanchi Police, Kancheepuram district, had launched a probe into the murder of Prabakaran. Recently, he was arrested for ganja-peddling and had come out on bail. At 11 a.m., while he was returning home after signing at a police station, the two suspects, along with a gang, in a car, attempted to waylay him. On seeing them, Prabakaran took to his heels. But the gang hacked him to death in public. Investigation revealed that Prabakaran had previous enmity with Ragu and had murdered the latter’s brother, Narayanan, 12 years ago. To take revenge, Ragu and his associates murdered Prabakaran, the police said. Senior police officers met the injured personnel in the hospital. IG Kannan said: “Our personnel had to open fire in self-defence at the two suspects. We are searching for two more suspects in connection with the murder [of Prabakaran]. We are continuously monitoring history-sheeters.”