Mayawati pays last respects to slain BSP leader Armstrong in Chennai, says real culprits behind murder not arrested

CHENNAI: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati demanded a CBI probe into the death of Armstrong, who was hacked to death here on Friday, claiming that those who have been arrested so far were not the real culprits. She urged Chief Minister MK Stalin to refer the probe to the central agency to ensure justice to the victim.

The former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh paid her last respects to slain state party chief K Armstrong and placed a wreath before his body at the Chennai Bunder Garden School in Perambur on Sunday.

Expressing anguish over Armstrong's death, she also said the way he was killed, by a group of assailants late in the evening, showed "there was nothing called law and order" in the state.

"CM Stalin must ensure justice for Armstrong and transfer the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation. The way he was killed, shows there is nothing called law and order in Tamil Nadu. Those who have killed him, the real culprits have not been nabbed. Transfer the probe to CBI. We are not hopeful that the state government will ensure justice. So, refer the matter to CBI immediately," Mayawati demanded.

The BSP supremo further said Dalits all over the state were apprehensive following Armstrong's killing and urged the CM to ensure their safety.

The BSP has taken the matter seriously, but party workers should not take law and order into their hands, she said.

Armstrong, 52, was hacked to death by a six-member bike-borne gang near his house in Perambur in Chennai on Friday, sending shockwaves across the state.

Amid protests by BSP cadre at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, the BSP leader's body was handed over to his family after midnight. After being taken to his Ayanavaram residence, his body was brought to the school for the public to pay their homages.

In a post on 'X' on Saturday, Mayawati had termed the murder of the Dalit leader as "brutal", and said the government must act to prevent similar incidents in the future.

"The brutal murder of K Armstrong, a dedicated and hardworking BSP leader and president of the party's Tamil Nadu unit, outside his Chennai residence last evening, has caused widespread sorrow and outrage in the entire society. The government must take immediate and necessary action to prevent such incidents in the future," she said in the post, written in Hindi.

She had also appealed to supporters and party workers to maintain peace.

In a midnight operation soon after the murder, eight suspects were apprehended. The main accused is Ponnai V Balu (39), the younger brother of Arcot V Suresh, a notorious gangster who was hacked in full public view last year.

Although the city police officially ruled out any political motive behind the murder, top sources in the department confirmed to DT Next that the killing was in retaliation for Arcot Suresh's murder.

(With PTI inputs)