Chief Minister M.K Stalin on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, visited the residence of murdered BSP T.N. president K. Armstrong, and expressed his condolences to the late leader’s wife, Ms. Porkodi.
Armstrong, 52, was hacked to death by a gang of unidentified men near his house at Sembium on July 5. Police said he was murdered by members of a gang who were wearing the uniforms of food delivery executives.
The Chief Minister, in a social media post following his visit, said: “I promised her [Ms. Porkodi] that the government will bring to book, all those who were involved in the gruesome murder and get them punishments in a court of law.” He said the government was taking firm action in the case, against accused persons who have been apprehended so far.
“This is a government for all, and the police will act in an impartial manner,” he added.
So far, the police have arrested 11 persons suspected to be involved in the murder.
On Sunday, July 7, Bahujan Samaj Party leader and former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati, attended Armstrong’s funeral at which thousands of well-wishers took part, and called for the T.N. government to hand over the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
T.N. BJP president K. Annamalai too, has demanded a CBI probe and has said Chief Minister Stalin could take responsibility, and come forward to hand over the case to the CBI to ensure a transparent investigation. Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K. Selvaperunthagai also said the perpetrators must be arrested and said the police must deal with those who committed such crimes, with an iron hand.
It may be recalled that the government, on Monday, July 8, 2024, posted Additional Director-General of Police (Law & Order) A. Arun as the Commissioner of Police, Chennai, replacing Director-General of Police Sandeep Rai Rathore. The transfer came just two days after Armstrong’s murder.
IPS reshuffle
Mr. Stalin also reviewed the law and order situation in the State with top officials at the Secretariat. Within a few hours of the meeting, the government reshuffled 18 senior IPS officers. It posted N. Kannan as Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) South, Greater Chennai Police, replacing Prem Anand Sinha. Mr. Sinha was posted as Inspector-General of Police, South Zone.
K.S. Narenthiran Nayar was posted as AC (Law and Order), North, Greater Chennai Police, replacing Asra Garg. Mr. Garg was posted as IG, North Zone. A. Amalraj was posted as ADGP, Enforcement Bureau CID. Abin Dinesh Modak was posted as Tambaram Police Commissioner.
H.M. Jayaram was posted as ADGP, State Crime Records Bureau, while Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal was appointed ADGP, Armed Police, Chennai. G. Venkatraman was posted as ADGP, Administration, and Vinit Dev Wankhade as ADGP, Headquarters. T.S. Anbu will hold additional charge as ADGP, CB-CID.
Sanjay Kumar was posted as ADGP, Coastal Security Group, and Sandeep Mittal was appointed ADGP, Cyber Crime Wing. Rajeev Kumar was posted as DGP, Crime against Women and Children in Chennai. R. Tamil Chandran was posted as ADGP, Technical Services.
Praveen Kumar Abhinapu was posted as Salem Police Commissioner, and S. Lakshmi as Tiruppur Police Commissioner. B. Vijayakumari was made IG, Armed Police in Chennai.
EPS visits the bereaved
Later in the day, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami also visited Armstrong’s family and expressed his condolences. He criticised the DMK regime over the recent trend of killings.
