According to police, Ragu was killed by a speeding lorry which was coming from the wrong direction.
The death of a 30-year-old motorist in an accident in Tamil Nadu has snowballed into a major social media outrage, which has put the ruling AIADMK on the backfoot.
Software engineer Ragupathy died on last Saturday when his motorcycle crashed into a temporary wooden arch set up on a road in Coimbatore by the ruling AIADMK for its MGR centenary celebrations.
As Ragupathy hit the structure and fell off his bike, a truck ran him over. The young engineer working in the US had come home to Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore to meet a prospective bride and he was set to return over the weekend. The techie was planning to visit a temple in Palani after parking his bike at a bus stand, when the accident happened.
With someone painting 'Who killed Ragu?' on the spot of the accident and even marking the 'hole' drilled on the road with the paint for erecting arch with the wooden logs, it went viral on the social media with people questioning the AIADMK government’s publicity blitz risking the lives of the motorists.
With public anger palpable, the Coimbatore police claimed that the engineer was ran over by a lorry which was coming in the wrong direction. The police has arrested the driver and seized a tipper lorry involved in the incident. The police also claims to be in possession of CCTV footage which proves wrong the theory of the techie dying of injuries after hitting the wooden arch.
Meanwhile, police on Tuesday detained two friends of Ragupathy on suspicion overwriting on the road “who killed Ragu?” However, no cases were filed and both of them were let out after being questioned, a police officer.
Activists and political parties blamed the illegal arch which narrowed road space for the tragic accident. The civic body officials removed the arch immediately after the accident claiming it to be illegal, but local administration minister claimed that permission was obtained for the structure. DMK Working President MK Stalin condemned the accident and tweeted, “Under the pretext of #MGRcentenary, the AIADMK govt. continues to blatantly violate the High Court's order on obstructive & dangerous hoardings - now resulting in the death of Ragu, a promising young engineer in Coimbatore. I condemn this lawless govt. in the strongest terms.”
DMK MLA N Karthik has filed a PIL in the Madras High Court to declare erection of hoardings, banners, arches and flex boards across Coimbatore for MGR birth centenary celebrations as illegal. The petitioner wants a direction to the State government to pay compensation to Ragupathy's family.
Actor Kamal Haasan reacted strongly to the incident and tweeted, “Any government that regards power and fame even at the cost of others life will fall. A government that doesn't respect pedestrians won't go too long on the palanquin. Banner 'Jis' should realise those who pave way for accidents abet murder.”
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