Kollam: In what police suspect to be a gang feud, a murder case accused, who was out on bail, was hacked to death in broad daylight near Karunagappally on Saturday. Police have taken four people into custody in connection with the murder.City police commissioner Hemalatha said two of those detained were directly involved in the murder, while the other two allegedly helped the accused hide after the crime. Police have withheld the identities of the accused, stating that revealing the names could affect the ongoing probe. Athul alias Aluva Athul, 30, the prime accused in the murder of gang leader Gym Santhosh, was attacked around 11.15am near Puthiyakavu on NH while returning after reporting at the Karunagappally police station as part of his bail conditions.Police said a gang travelling in a Haryana-registered SUV chased the blue car in which Athul was travelling towards Oachira. The attackers rammed the vehicle into a depression along an NH stretch under-construction near a newly opened petrol pump.Four men armed with deadly weapons got out of the vehicle, smashed the windows of Athul’s car, dragged him out and hacked him repeatedly. Manu alias Kuku, who was travelling with Athul and is believed to have been driving the car, also sustained injuries but managed to escape. The assailants fled the scene in the same vehicle after the attack.Police rushed grievously injured Athul, who sustained injuries to the head and legs, to a private hospital in Karunagappally. However, he succumbed to injuries.Santhosh was murdered on March 27 last year when a gang allegedly led by Athul broke open the door of his house using explosives and hacked him to death in front of his mother. The gang later attacked Aneer, an associate of Santhosh, near Vavvakkavu while fleeing the scene.After the incident, Athul had gone into hiding and was arrested by police about a month later from Thiruvallur in Tamil Nadu. Police had also recovered deadly weapons, including a pistol, from his house in Vallikunnam. Athul was released on bail in the Santhosh murder case two days ago and was required to report daily at Karunagappally police station. Athul was the son of Ashokan and Rajini. He is survived by his wife Pratheesha and son Atmaaj.Venugopal expresses shock: AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said the cold-blooded murder was another manifestation of the total breakdown of law and order in the state. “Systems like the police which are supposed to curb hooliganism are giving protection to those who are indulging in it,” he alleged.
