15-07-2025
Tribal association slams police inaction on alleged attack on Irulas in Pennagaram
The Tamil Nadu Tribal Association (TNTA) has slammed the alleged attack on an Irula family by a dominant caste family in a Pennagaram village here early last month.
According to the complaint lodged by the Irula family, residents of Kuzhipatti village in Vattuvanahalli panchayat in Pennagaram, the attack took place on June 10. The assault on the Irula woman, and her family however led to filing of cases on both the parties, the victims and the perpetrators, according to TNTA.
On Tuesday, the TNTA led protests demanding the police make arrests under the Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The victims, Murugan and his wife Deivanai, are among the 20 Irula households in the Kuzhipatti village, with a majority belonging to the dominant Vanniyar community houses.
The couple also owns 50 cents of marginal holding on which they raise groundnuts and millets. Like others in the village, a part of poramboke land was under cultivation by Murugan. However, according to the complaint, the alleged aggressor Selvam, from the dominant community, had been demanding a road on the farmland under Murugan's use in order to reach Selvam's land, also a poramboke. On July 10, Selvam had brought in a tractor, trespassed into Murugan's land, levelled the vegetation and laid a road. Murugan's wife Deivanai, who had come in the way of the tractor to stop the levelling of their agricultural land was also attacked and disrobed, according to the TNTA.
CPI(M) ex-MLA Dilli Babu, who lead the protest on Tuesday, slammed the attack as a deliberate act to grab the lands of the Irulas. The assault on Deivanai, which had reportedly left her incapacitated with injury to her ribs, and other family members led to their admission to Dharmapuri government hospital. In their absence, the vegetation on the poramboke under Murugan's use was cleared up and a 10 feet road was laid by Selvam to the poramboke under his use, according to TNTA.
On Tuesday, TNTA demanded arrests of the perpetrators of the violence on Deivanai. The Tribal association affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has also demanded compensation for the loss of trees on Murugan's land.
The Hindu contacted Sabapathi, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Pennagaram, on the status of the case. Mr. Sabapathi said, 'the Irulas went to Vanniyars land and created ruckus, which led to fisticuffs.'
Further, the DSP said that the other parties have approached the court for anticipatory bail and no arrest was made.
