A week after 28-year-old Indian Army soldier M Prabhu succumbed to his injuries after he was assaulted by a group of men including DMK councillor Chinnasamy, the Tamil Nadu BJP and the party’s ex-servicemen wing staged a daylong hunger strike against the state government.
Hundreds participated in the protest, including Bharatiya Janata Party state president K Annamalai, and questioned the “silence” of chief minister MK Stalin on the issue.
Along with veterans of the Indian Armed Forces who spent their lives in the service of our nation, brothers & sisters of @BJP4TamilNadu, sat on a one-day fast in solidarity with the bereaving family of Lance Naik Prabhu, who was brutally murdered by a DMK councillor. (1/5) pic.twitter.com/A3tJbrubVZ— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) February 21, 2023
Speaking to CNN-News 18, Annamalai said, “Prabhu was beaten and assaulted on February 8 but the police took action only six days later. The hunger strike is to wake up the DMK from its slumber. The way the chief minister has handled the issue…I hang my head in shame that we have let down an Army soldier.”
Annamalai said Prabhu’s death has been conflated to reflect the attitude among Tamils towards those serving in the Army. “The impression that is going around across the country is that Tamil Nadu doesn’t care for its soldiers,” he said.
The BJP also held a candlelight vigil on Tuesday evening and staged a silent march up to the war memorial in Chennai. “This is to create awareness among people of the country that we, as Tamilians, will stand behind our Army soldiers,” Annamalai added.
Tamil Nadu BJP also assured the family of Prabhu that the party will pay Rs 10 lakh and also take care of the education expenses of his school-going children.
Ex-servicemen from the BJP demanded that the state government pay a compensation of Rs 5 crore to Prabhu’s family and sanction a government job for his wife.
On February 8, Prabhu was beaten up in the Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu. After battling in hospital for six days, he succumbed to his injuries.
According to the police, Prabhu’s sister-in-law used the water tank near the area’s panchayat office for washing clothes. What started off as an argument between two parties led to physical attacks. The ward councillor got into a fight with Prabhu’s brother Prabhakaran, who is also an Army officer. When Prabhu tried to break them up, the councillor and his men allegedly beat him up.
Prabhu’s family has strongly sought action from the chief minister against the DMK councillor and his men.
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