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Police file charge sheet in murder case of TN BSP chief Armstrong
The Greater Chennai city police filed a charge sheet in the murder of BSP leader K Armstrong on Thursday in a metropolitan magistrate court in Chennai citing 30 suspects
The Greater Chennai city police filed a charge sheet in the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader K Armstrong on Thursday in a metropolitan magistrate court in Chennai citing 30 suspects, including those who have been jailed. Police have arrested 28 suspects so far.
The primary accused have been identified as Nagendran (who is in the Vellore central prison serving a life sentence in the murder of a former AIADMK MLA), Sambav Senthil (who is absconding), and Nagendran’s son Aswathaman, said a police official, not wishing to be quoted. The Chennai police have also been looking into a money trail in the case and investigating the bank transfers of the accused.
“A special financial investigation team is working on the case,” A Arun, Greater Chennai Police commissioner, had told reporters in September.
The Tamil Nadu’s BSP chief’s murder on July 5 rocked the state and further sharpened the opposition’s attack over the law and order situation in the state. BSP chief Mayawati, who was in Chennai for his funeral, had alleged that the real perpetrators have not been arrested so far, an allegation which the Chennai police dismissed.
Preliminary investigation led by ADGP Asra Garg revealed that Armstrong was murdered in retaliation for the killing of gangster Arcot alias V Suresh last year.
On July 14, the Chennai police shot dead one of the accused named Thiruvengadam. The police had taken Thiruvengadam to his residence in Chennai’s Manali to seize the weapons used to attack and kill Armstrong, Chennai police had said in a statement. On their way back, he tried to escape by attacking the police who said that they shot him in self-defence.
On the same day, police released CCTV footage of how the gang murdered Armstrong. The 2.5 minute video shows the accused men arriving one by one at a construction site in Chennai’s Perambur. Two of them dressed as food delivery agents in red are seen approaching Armstrong who was supervising the construction of his home. The accused came together to stab him repeatedly before fleeing.
“His murder was a result of a conspiracy by different gangs with varied motives,” a police officer said, not wishing to be named. “Business interests in real estate, previous enmity, and gang rivalry are believed to be the motive in Armstrong’s murder.”
The charge sheet, which runs for more than 5,000 pages says that the three primary accused planned Armstrong’s murder with the help of ‘Arcot’ Suresh’s aides, the officer added.
“The three main accused hired Suresh’s men to murder Armstrong,” the officer said.
In September, BSP’s Tamil Nadu unit had written to Rahul Gandhi asking for him to remove Tamil Nadu Congress chief K Selvaperunthagai, accusing him of his connection to Nagendran.
“Nagendran’s son Ashwathaman was appointed as the principal general secretary of the youth wing by Selvaperunthagai,” BSP’s letter had said. “He is a well-known and is working in the field for his father Nagendran and Selvaperunthagai.”
But the Congress has not responded to the allegations.
