The people of Tamil Nadu were in for a rude shock on July 17 morning as they watched on TV the scenes of a large number of youth rioting on the premises of a higher secondary school at Kaniyamoor in Kallakurichi distric.
The stated purpose of the protesters was to “secure justice” for a Class XII girl student who was found dead on July 13 in the school hostel. While officials view the death as a case of suicide, the parents of the girl are not convinced It is this conflict over the cause of death that paved the way for the violence.
Furniture, school buses, other vehicles, and properties associated with the school were destroyed. Ultimately, it was the police who suffered the most. Nearly 110 police personnel, including Deputy Inspector-General of Police (Villupuram range) M. Pandian, were injured. Around 60% of the nearly 100 gutted vehicles belonged to the police.
