CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu police have detained four 17-year-old school dropouts for allegedly attacking a 20-year-old migrant worker from Odisha with sickles near abandoned railway quarters in Tiruttani, on the northwestern outskirts of Chennai. Police said the assault was filmed by the accused to be posted on social media.
The victim, identified as K Suraj, had recently come to Chennai following a family dispute and was earning a living through odd jobs, police said on Monday.
According to investigators, the incident began on Saturday evening aboard a Chennai–Tiruttani EMU local train. The four juveniles boarded the compartment at Thiruvalangadu station, about 70 km northwest of Chennai. Police said they were allegedly intoxicated and had concealed two sickles in bags, with the intent of recording content for social media.
A brief exchange in Hindi reportedly led to an argument that continued until the train reached Tiruttani station, around 90 km from Chennai. After getting down, the youths allegedly forced Suraj towards railway quarters near the tracks, where three of them attacked him with sickles while another recorded the incident on a mobile phone, police said.
Suraj sustained serious injuries and managed to reach a nearby road, where passers-by alerted railway police. He was taken to the Tiruttani government hospital and later shifted to Tiruvallur Government Medical College Hospital. Doctors said his condition was stable.
Police traced the suspects after the video surfaced on Instagram and detained them later that night near the Gangai Amman temple along the Tiruttani–Arakkonam bypass, where they were allegedly drinking.
All four were produced before the Juvenile Justice Board. Three were sent to a government observation home, while the fourth, described as differently abled, was released to his parents with a warning.
