Body recovered day after man jumps into Adyar

On Saturday night, L Radhakrishnan (24), a resident of Adyar, was riding on his bike towards Santhome, along with his friend Suresh. After stopping him on the Thiru-Vi-Ka bridge, the police booked him for drunken driving as the breathalyser reading confirmed that he had consumed alcohol. When the police asked him to produce vehicle documents, Radhakrishnan suddenly jumped off from the bridge into the river.

Both police and Fire Service personnel immediately began search and rescue operation, which continued for the second consecutive day on Monday. Though initially it was thought Radhakrishnan could have swam to the shore, his body was seen floating almost a kilometre away from the bridge. It was recovered around 7 am on Monday, and was sent to the Royapettah Government Hospital for autopsy. Police have registered a case over the death.

Meanwhile, Radhakrishnan’s relatives gathered near the Thiru-Vi-Ka Bridge and staged a road blockade on Monday, claiming that the youth was forced to jump off the bridge due to alleged police excess. 

But the City Police denied the allegation. “The man was drunk, with his reading at 200mg on breath analyser. The alcohol level in his blood was six times higher than the permissible level,” a senior officer said. According to the rules, the permissible level of blood alcohol concentration (BAC) is 30mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood.