The rival colleges Pachaiyappa and Presidency are known for their long standing rivalry and violent gang wars. On Tuesday, the two groups clashed and vandalised the Pattaravakkam Railway Station. The incident resulted in three people getting injured as the commuters ran in fear.
The accused students were traveling on Chennai’s suburban train route Tiruvallur when the fight started. In an attempt to establish supremacy the two groups got into a heated argument. The Pachaiyappa group got off the train chasing the Presidency students with knives and sickles.
The accused student explained they carried weapons to scare the other students. A report filed by the police also stated the students confessed to the crime.
The incident was reported to the railway police by one of the passengers. But the students fled before the police reached the Station. The report confirmed that two students from Presidency College were injured.
Mohan Raghupathy a BSC Botany Student from Pachaiyappa’s college was arrested by the railway police. The police has also sent out a search party to nab the remaining perpetrators.
Principal of Pachayappa’s college stated, “Police have informed me that 5 students of our college were involved in the incidents. Two of them, Muthu Pandi (BA Philosophy) and Aakash don’t study here any more as they were expelled following a similar incident sometime ago. None of our students has sustained injuries.”
Last year in October a similar incident of vandalism took place. The two colleges are fighting for supremacy over the area.
