Drunk man molests woman, beaten by mob

Police have managed to identify him as Anandhan, but were not able to obtain other details as he remains unconscious at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.

Sarala (name changed), a mother of two residing in the locality, was heading to the vegetable market when an inebriated Anandhan, coming from the opposite direction, hugged her and allegedly tore her blouse. The woman screamed in shock, hearing which the villagers rushed to her rescue. Alarmed by the gathering crowd, the man ran away from the spot and took refuge inside a photocopy shop nearby and locked himself in.

The public alerted the local police and surrounded the shop to prevent him from escaping. 

Local sources said the information was passed on to the Vandalur-Otteri police first as it was close by. However, the officials there reportedly refused to attend the case stating that it was not under their jurisdiction. The villagers then called Guduvancherry police, but they, too, cited jurisdiction and asked them to contact Thazhmbur police. When Thazhambur police were contacted, they reportedly told them to bring the accused to the station, as Kandigai village was far away. With police failing to turn up, the public, including women, grew angry and went inside the shop to drag Anandhan out.

The crowd gave a thrashing, before a few motorists passing by intervened and asked them to take him to the police station.

By the time Anandhan was finally bundled into an auto-rickshaw and taken to the Thazhambur station at 8.30 pm, he had taken a heavy beating. The officials there registered a case against him, and provided him first-aid at a private hospital at Kelambakkam, before taking him to RGGGH. Police said his condition was critical, and added that they were inquiring about the mob that assaulted the molester.