CHENNAI: Two members of a fishing community were injured in a midnight attack by a gang at Thiruvanmiyur on Monday.The contentious issue of setting up a new ration shop for fishermen colonies at Odai Kuppam and Odaimanagar led to the attack, Investigating Officer V Gunasekaran told Express. The fishermen families, numbering about 550, were organised into four or five groups, each having a leader, for the purpose of internal administration, he said.About three months ago, the Odai Kuppam and Odaimanagar fishermen living near Ashtalakshmi temple made a representation to the government, stating that there was just one PDS shop located near the bus stand in Besant Nagar for the nearly 2,000 community members. “They claimed that the old and infirm were unable to walk so far and return home with the heavy load,” the inspector said.Hence, the fishermen demanded that a PDS shop be opened near their colony. The local councillor agreed and asked them to identify a place for the purpose. The fishermen colonies owned 11 shops in the area and they zeroed in ‘Manikandan Cool Bar’ run by Santhanam near Velankanni Church. “Other shops were located in interior parts, making it inaccessible to lorries, while the soft drinks shop was on the main road,” he added.Initially, under the mediation of assistant commissioner (Adyar) N Mohanraj, the shop owner agreed to vacate the place but later backtracked, leading to tension. On Monday morning, some fishermen locked the shop and lodged a complaint with the ACP. Around midnight, an armed gang attacked the residents of Odai Kuppam and Odaimanagar in which Viji (39) and Bhanumathi (50) were injured. Five persons, Palani, Ramadoss, Karunanidhi alias Karuna, Muthukumar and Ramu, were arrested in connection with the incident.
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