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Tamil Nadu BSP chief killed: 8 suspects detained; party workers block Chennai road
K Armstrong was hacked to death by a six-member gang near his house in Chennai on Friday.
At least eight suspects have been detained in connection with the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) state president K Armstrong, news agency PTI reported on Saturday, citing the police.
K Armstrong was hacked to death by a six-member gang near his house in Chennai on Friday. The gang attacked Armstrong, a former councillor of Chennai Corporation, near his house in Perambur, and fled before inflicting grievous injuries on him. He died on the way to the hospital.
Asra Garg, additional commissioner (North), told reporters that the police have formed 10 teams to nab the accused.
"We have secured eight suspects so far. This is early an investigation, a preliminary investigation. So after some time, a clear and better picture will emerge with more facts and circumstances coming to light," he said.
Garg also said the police suspected that there were some “two to three suspicious motives” behind Armstrong's killing but added that the exact reason would come to light only after the interrogation of the suspects.
BSP workers hold protest
Meanwhile, workers and supporters of the BSP held protests in Chennai against the killing of Armstrong.
A traffic jam was reported at the Poonamallee High Road in Chennai as BSP workers and supporters blocked the road outside Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital, where the postmortem of the party's state unit president, K Armstrong, is being performed.
According to the news agency, the protesters said they did not have faith in the Tamil Nadu government and have demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the matter. They have also sought the resignation of Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin.
Meanwhile, former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and BSP chief Mayawati has condemned the gruesome killing of the party's Tamil Nadu president, asking the state government to "punish the guilty."
"The gruesome killing of K. Armstrong, Tamil Nadu state Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president, outside his Chennai house is highly deplorable and condemnable. An advocate by profession, he was known as a strong Dalit voice in the state. The state Govt. must punish the guilty," Mayawati said in a post on X on Friday.
Who was K Armstrong?
K Armstrong completed his law degree from Venkateswara University, Tirupati, and practiced law in Chennai courts.
He first served as a corporation councillor in 2006 and later became the president of the BSP's Tamil Nadu unit in the subsequent year. In the 2011 Tamil Nadu assembly election, he contested in the Kolathur constituency, receiving substantial support despite not winning.
Throughout his career, he consistently advocated for the rights of Dalits and the underprivileged. Although the BSP does not have a political presence in Chennai, Amstrong, an advocate, was a known Dalit voice.
