Chennai: Gun-toting students arrested for assault

CHENNAI: In yet another instance of violence involving the north Indian community in the city, two youth from Bihar, studying in a private university on OMR, were held on charges of assault and brandishing a gun at a cook at their house in Neelangarai. A special police team raided the house where Pradhosh Pandey (20) and Sekar Anand (20) stayed along with a group of students in Vettuvangeni on the ECR early on Thursday following a complaint lodged by a cook from Bihar, Ranjit Kumar (21), claiming that the duo had threatened him with a gun.Ranjit had been initially cooking for the students and later deputed his brother Surjit Kumar for the work. After working for two months, Surjit left for his native. The students owed him Rs 1,200 and, in his brother’s absence, Ranjit demanded the money from them. After a telephonic talk with one of the students, Sudhir Singh, Ranjit went to their house on Saturday to collect the money.The students, Pradosh Pandey, Sekhar Anand, Sudhir Singh and Rahul Kumar, were assembled in the terrace on Saturday night and a verbal tiff soon ensued between Ranjit and the group. The cook alleged that while he was beaten up by the students, Pradosh took out a gun and threatened to shoot him.Registering a case under the Indian Arms Act, the police team search the students’ house and seized an unlicensed country gun from Pradosh. Pradosh, a native of West Sambara, and Sekhar Anand, studying B Tech (third year) were arrested.Joint Commissioner (south zone) K P Shanmugharajeswaran said a show-cause notice would be issued to the house owner for failure to submit details of his tenants. As per a directive issued by the commissioner, after two recent bank robberies, house owners must submit details of their tenants to the local police station, he pointed out.  Asked where he had procured the gun, Pradosh claimed that it had been left behind by a “student broker” from Bihar, Shailesh Yadav. Pandey said Yadav had arrived at their house in November last and requested that he be allowed to stay in their house for about 10-15 days. The student alleged that Yadav decamped with a laptop and hid the country gun amidst books. “A photograph of Shailesh has been passed on to a police team camping in Bihar,” the JCP said.  The two students were later remanded in judicial custody.