Police said the incident was an accident; DMK cadre staged a sit-in at the police station demanding action; lorry driver has been arrested
A life-sized statue of social reformer Periyar EV Ramasamy was damaged when a container lorry rammed into Kamaraj Salai in Villupuram town on Wednesday midnight. Terming the incident as an act of miscreants, police said it was an accident and the driver of the lorry has been taken into custody.
Police said that the statue was installed around 40 years ago at Kamaraj Salai intersection in the town. The container lorry was on its way to Pune carrying tires from a factory in Nettapakkam, Puducherry. The incident took place when the lorry driver Mahendra Sable was overturning the vehicle when it collided with the idol. The idol and the post fell due to the collision.
As the news spread, members of the ruling DMK staged a sit-in at the Villupuram Town police station and blocked traffic at the Four Roads Junction, urging the police to take strict action against the lorry driver. The members had a heated argument with the policemen after revenue officials tried to remove the damaged statue.
They withdrew their protest after senior police personnel pacified them. The lorry driver has been arrested. A case has been registered.
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