Buckshots fired to disperse protesters

By Our Staff Reporter

VEDARANYAM, SEPT. 2. Police fired buckshots in air at Udaiyathevankadu village, near Voimedu, around midnight on Saturday to disperse an unruly mob which indulged in stone throwing protesting the delay in arrival of fire tenders to extinguish a local fire.

Three police personnel, including an Inspector, sustained minor injuries and five vehicles including two police jeeps were damaged.

Twenty persons were arrested today in connection with the incident.

According to the police, the trouble began when the police and fire service personnel arrived at the village where two thatched sheds were gutted around 10 p.m. Irate villagers blocked roads with tree branches and street light posts.

When the police attempted to thwart the move, they started throwing stones at the police.

As the situation went out of control, police used ``mild force'' to disperse the crowd.

With the crowd continuing to throw stones on the police from the by-lanes, the police fired two rounds of buckshot to bring the situation under control.

Meanwhile, a senior police official from the Crime Branch CID came to Mayiladuthurai last afternoon to investigate the cause of fire incidents taking place at frequent intervals at different places in Nagapattinam district in the last three months.

Also, officials from the Forensic Science Department visited some of the places affected by ``mysterious'' fires in the district, and collected samples from those sites for investigation.

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Section  : Southern States
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