Tamil Nadu / Man with sword & shield attacks TV news channel's office in Chennai

Chennai: In a big security scare, a man brandished a sword and ransacked the Chennai office of Tamil news channel Sathiyam TV on August 3, Tuesday evening. CCTV footage from the reception area of the channel’s head office in Royapuram shows a man wearing an army print jacket and holding a guitar case walking in around 7.04 pm on Tuesday and talking animatedly to the men standing there. He talks, pointing at the man sitting behind the desk for a while, as more people start walking to the area, possibly to see what the discussion was about. A security guard also comes to check what is happening.

Then the man draws out a sword and a shield from the guitar case and brandishes it at people while walking around the office area. He even swipes the sword at people from a distance, threatening them to stay away. He strikes at a sanitiser bottle kept on the table and it falls to the ground. He then walks around ransacking the office and damaging objects placed around.

According to reports, the man even smashed the TV and decorative glass in the computer office with a handgun. He also made death threats to those who were on duty at the office. The New Indian Express reports that the 31-year-old man has been identified as D Rajesh Kumar, a resident of Coimbatore, who arrived in a car with a Gujarat number plate.

Another CCTV footage shows the man holding his sword at two people backed into the corner, who seem to be trying to reason with him. Pieces of shattered glass are seen strewn across the floor and the two people are seen using pieces of furniture to block the man from entering the room.

The police said that Rajesh has been arrested and an FIR has been registered. “The man’s name is Rajesh Kumar and the incident took place on Tuesday evening. We have arrested him and he is being questioned presently. However, we have not added any sections to the FIR yet, as we are still investigating the case and gathering more details,” an officer from the Royapuram police station told TNM, adding that the case is being processed.

The Chennai Press Club has strongly condemned the incident terming it a ‘terror attack’ and has urged the Tamil Nadu government to investigate it. The Press Club also asked the Tamil Nadu government to ensure the safety of the press and media in the state.

Bharathi Tamilan, Joint Secretary of the Chennai Press Club, called the incident an attack on media freedom. “I hope government and officials take strict action and make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Sathiyam TV Managing Director Isaac Livingstone said that the man came to the office as a guest but suddenly went on a rampage. “This is a very cowardly act. A man, who came as a guest, suddenly took a sword out of a guitar case and threatened our employees. Luckily no one was injured or killed. This has created panic amongst many here but we will continue to report the truth without fearing anyone,” he said.