Madurai, May 25 (IANS) The Tamil Nadu BJP on Monday launched a sharp attack on the state government following the brutal murder of a 17-year-old boy near the Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai, with state BJP president Nainar Nagenthran alleging a deterioration in law and order and questioning the government’s handling of crime.

In a strongly worded post on the social media platform X on Monday, Nainar Nagenthran said the incident was “deeply shocking” and demanded stringent punishment for all those involved in the crime.

He also used the incident to criticise Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay and the ruling administration over public safety. “Must people wake up every day worrying about where a murder has taken place or which woman has become a victim of sexual assault? How many more lives should be lost before Chief Minister Joseph Vijay learns the basics of governance?” he said in the post.

Nagenthran further alleged that Vijay, who had sharply criticised the previous government over law-and-order issues during the election campaign, should have prioritised tackling the problem immediately after assuming office.

The criticism comes after a teenager was hacked to death near the Madurai Corporation-owned vehicle parking area close to the Meenakshi Amman Temple in the early hours of Monday.

Police said the victim was sleeping in the parking area when a five-member gang entered the premises armed with sickles and other weapons and attacked him repeatedly before fleeing.

Following an investigation, police arrested all five accused, including a youth identified as Muthumani.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the murder may have stemmed from prior enmity linked to a dispute during the recent Chithirai festival celebrations. Police sources also indicated that the deceased allegedly had criminal cases pending against him.

The incident has once again drawn attention to the recurring issue of violent crimes and caste-linked tensions in parts of southern Tamil Nadu.

Districts including Madurai, Theni, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga have historically witnessed caste-based clashes and retaliatory killings involving dominant and marginalised communities.

Several high-profile incidents in recent years, including honour killings and murders linked to inter-caste relationships and local rivalries, have repeatedly highlighted the region’s social fault lines.

While police often attribute such crimes to personal disputes or local rivalries, activists have long argued that underlying caste tensions continue to influence violence in several pockets of South Tamil Nadu.

–IANS

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