In separate incidents, two senior citizens were attacked and their sacred threads cut allegedly by members of a Dravidian outfit to protest against what they claimed was "denigration" of rationalist leader Periyar E V Ramasamy, police said today.
While 76-year-old priest Viswanatha Gurukkal was physically pushed to the ground and his sacred thread ripped, a 71-year-old bhajan singer Santhana Gopalan was roughed up, both allegedly by seven motorcycle-borne persons, who waylaid them last night in separate incidents, they said.
While five of the attackers, belonging to Dravidar Viduthalai Kazhagam and aged between 25 to 30, were arrested and remanded to judicial custody, police said they are on the lookout for the other two.
One of those held included a man detained in 2013 under the National Security Act for allegedly hurling a petrol bomb, police said.
"Gurukkal was pushed to the ground, attacked and his sacred thread cut, while Santhanam was roughed up and his sacred thread (Janaav) was also cut," a senior police official told PTI, adding the victims sustained some injuries.
On the motive, the official said the activists claimed that "a propaganda vehicle of a rationalist movement was attacked in Tirupur and Periyar's images were denigrated."
The accused alleged that the members of a particular community had prompted the attack on the propaganda vehicle.
The assailants had also threatened the victims with dire consequences if they reported the incident, the official said, adding, police are on the look out for some more suspects in this regard.
All those arrested have been booked under several sections of IPC, including rioting, wrongful restraint, promoting enmity on grounds of religion or caste and causing public mischief.
The BJP, meanwhile, condemned the attack and sought appropriate action against the culprits.
