A five-year-old girl was injured in an acid attack on pavement dwellers near Ekkattuthangal Metro Station on Sunday. The incident occurred at 8:30 P.M. as the dwellers were preparing to sleep. Raja, the assailant, rode his bicycle near the pavement and threw an acid bottle, then fled the scene.
The acid splashed on the young girl, and the fumes caused eye irritation and breathlessness to the nearby people. The victim, Vaishnavi, sustained acid burns on her left hand and was swiftly taken to the hospital for treatment, reported The Hindu.
Based on a complaint by Vaishnavi's mother Revathy, the police have registered a case and former special teams to arrest Raja. The police are also trying to retrieve CCTV footage from the spot.
The preliminary investigation has revealed that Raja, a man recently released on bail after his imprisonment for a criminal case, was responsible for the acid attack. It is reported that Raja had a longstanding enmity with one of the pavement dwellers which led to this brutal incident, as per a report on News18 Tamilnadu.
Earlier, an elderly couple suffered burn injuries after miscreants, suspected to be robbers, threw acid into their home. The police believe the attackers resorted to this act out of frustration when they failed to find any valuables in the house.
In June 2022, an estranged boyfriend, Dheenadayalan, threw acid on his 26-year-old former girlfriend and her mother after allegedly barging into their home. The victims suffered burns to their eyes, mouths, and necks. Dheenadayalan knocked on the door, and when the girlfriend opened it, he began verbally abusing her. He then forced his way inside, pulled out two bottles of cleaning solution, and poured the contents on the girlfriend and her mother.
ALSO READ: Madhya Pradesh: 10 Booked After Dalit Couple Beaten, Forced To Wear Shoe Garlands