Key points
- The Union Home Ministry has reportedly asked Governor Arlekar for a report on Tamil Nadu's law and order after a string of killings on Diwali.
- Special Sub-Inspector Senthil Kumar, 56, was beaten in Theni for objecting to firecrackers and died on November 9.
- Chief Minister Vijay met the DGP and intelligence chief for a second straight day and ordered a crackdown on rowdies.
Tamil Nadu’s law and order has become a matter for New Delhi. The Union Home Ministry has asked Governor Rajendra Arlekar for a detailed report on the state’s public order, according to reports on Tuesday and Wednesday, after a string of killings on Diwali that left the opposition accusing Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s government of losing control. The request has not been officially confirmed.
The report is understood to cover the recent violent crimes and the steps the state administration has taken to keep the peace. Mr. Arlekar, who was moved to Tamil Nadu from Keralam in the recent round of Governor appointments, is scheduled to travel to New Delhi on Friday, November 13, according to reports.
What happened on Diwali night
The trigger was a run of killings across the state on Diwali, Sunday, November 8, and in the early hours of November 9. The government and police put the number at eight. The DMK, the AIADMK and the PMK say it was higher: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss spoke of at least 10, and DMK deputy general secretary Kanimozhi cited 11 murders in a single day. The BJP’s spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy said nine. The counts have not been reconciled.
The case that has dominated the debate is that of Special Sub-Inspector K. Senthil Kumar, 56, of Samadharmapuram in Theni district. He was attached to Palanichettipatti police station and on deputation at the office of the Theni Deputy Superintendent of Police. Returning home from work in civilian clothes, he found youths setting off loud firecrackers in the middle of a road, blocking traffic while they filmed social media reels.
He told them to move aside. They argued back, and when he began recording them on his phone to send to the police control room, the group surrounded and beat him. While he tried to detain one of them, he was struck, lost his balance, collapsed and lost consciousness. He died the next day, Monday, November 9. Police said an existing heart condition probably worsened the effect of the assault. Theni police have made several arrests and the investigation continues.
Other victims named by opposition leaders include a young woman in Thiruvallur, two juveniles at Samayapuram, an IT employee in Tiruchi and a youth in Chennai’s Vyasarpadi killed over an old enmity. The state government has said many of the clashes were fuelled by heavy drinking, sudden rage or old rivalries, and that three people had been detained in the first reports, with questioning under way to identify others.
The Chief Minister’s response
Mr. Vijay, who also holds the Home portfolio, announced ₹40 lakh in relief for Senthil Kumar’s family. On Tuesday, November 10, he met senior police officers and, according to reports, told them to crack down on criminals. On Wednesday he met the Director General of Police and Intelligence chief Asra Garg for a second day running.
Police have since stepped up operations to pick up known rowdies, to warn newly emerging ones of serious consequences and to ask some to leave their areas. Officers have begun classifying the criminal landscape, targeting those behind serious crimes and the gang leaders. No arrest figures or crime statistics had been released when this report was written.
The opposition’s attack
The criticism has come from every side. Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin said the people and even the police were not safe under the present government. Kanimozhi wrote on X: “Chief Minister, do not assume that people will put up with everything forever!” and said Mr. Vijay had stayed silent. AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami said law and order had collapsed completely and demanded ₹1 crore for the policeman’s family.
Mr. Anbumani blamed alcohol and asked for liquor shops to be shut during festivals. Mr. Thirupathy of the BJP linked the violence to liquor and rising drug trafficking and said a drunken mob had killed an officer in uniform. The state administration has rejected the charge that law and order has broken down.
Why it matters
Law and order is the first test of any new government, and Mr. Vijay holds the portfolio himself, so the blame sits at his desk. A Home Ministry request for a Governor’s report is not by itself a step against a state government, but it puts the Centre’s assessment on record at a time when the BJP is among the parties attacking the government. For residents, the immediate question is policing of festivals and nights: how many officers are on the street, and how quickly those who film, drink and block roads are dealt with.
What happens next
Mr. Arlekar’s trip to Delhi on November 13 is the next marker. The contents of his report, whether it will be made public, and any response from the Home Ministry are not yet known. In Theni, the police investigation into Senthil Kumar’s death continues.