Opposition leaders slam Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay over Deepavali murders

Ten unrelated murders were reported across Tamil Nadu from Sunday into Monday morning during Deepavali celebrations, drawing sharp criticism from opposition leaders against Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay and the TVK-led government.

Political Outrage

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami criticised the Chief Minister on social media, asking if he thought politics was a film set or the Chief Minister's chair was a platform for punch dialogues. He pointed to the lynching of Special Sub-Inspector Senthilkumar at Allinagaram in Theni district, where the officer was attacked after telling youths to stop blocking traffic with firecrackers and social media reels. Mr. Palaniswami argued that the announced solatium of forty lakh rupees for the bereaved family was not enough, demanding one crore rupees as stated in an October Government Order. AMMK founder T.T.V. Dhinakaran also attacked the government for paying greater entertainment focus to social events instead of state governance and law and order.

Incidents Across the State

Police said the victims included the Theni officer, two individuals in a Tiruchirappalli double murder, and a man killed in Chennai's Vyasarpadi. In Vyasarpadi, auto-rickshaw driver Dhanush was hacked to death by six assailants after going to question attackers who targeted his brother, dying while being taken to Stanley Government Hospital. In Samayapuram near Tiruchirappalli, two seventeen-year-old daily wage workers were killed near the Pullambadi canal, while a twenty-year-old IT worker visiting home from Chennai was stabbed to death during a dispute over firecrackers. In Cuddalore, a history-sheeter named Prithiviraj was stabbed to death with a beer bottle, after which police shot suspect Arularasan in the leg during an arrest.

Context

Festive holiday periods often see a rise in local street disputes and alcohol-fuelled violence, putting extra pressure on local law enforcement forces deployed for crowd control. Opposition parties frequently use spikes in violent crime during major festivals to question the ruling administration's grip on public safety.