When Quarry Thugs Targeted Activists in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli: Violent Disruption of Mining Grievances Hearing Exposes Systemic Intimidation

Tirunelveli/Tamil Nadu- A public hearing organized by anti-corruption NGO Arappor Iyakkam to document grievances against illegal stone quarrying in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli district on Sunday, descended into chaos when a group of quarry supporters stormed the venue, threw chairs, and assaulted panel members, including prominent human rights activist Dr. V. Suresh. The incident, captured on video, has sparked widespread outrage, with the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) condemning it as an "attempt to silence voices against environmental exploitation."

The hearing, held at Rose Mahal in Tirunelveli, began peacefully at 10:30 AM, drawing over 100 villagers from areas like Radhapuram, Alangulam, Ponnaakudi, and Kayatharu. Participants shared harrowing accounts of groundwater depletion, agricultural damage, structural vibrations from blasting, and disrupted water flow in local canals due to unchecked quarrying activities. Arappor Convenor Jayaram Venkatesan highlighted prior complaints documenting over one crore metric tonnes of illegal mineral extraction in the district.

The expert panel, chaired by Dr. V. Suresh, a senior Madras High Court advocate and PUCL National General Secretary, also included S. Nandhakumar (Vice President, Thannatchi Iyakkam), N. Udhay Rajan (Director, Uvakai Research Foundation), I. Nandhini (social activist focused on farmers' issues), and Dr. A. Thanigaivel (biodiversity expert). Attendees praised the forum as a vital platform for voicing concerns often ignored by authorities.

Trouble erupted around 11 AM when approximately 25 unidentified individuals, later identified as advocates representing quarry owners, entered the hall without registering and positioned themselves at the back. By 11:25 AM, led by Vinoth Kumar and Arogiyasamy, the group surged forward, shouting slogans, banging tables, and demanding the event's immediate cancellation. Despite Dr. Suresh's repeated appeals for calm and offers to let them speak via microphone, the disruptors refused, escalating to violence.

Eyewitnesses and video footage show one assailant hurling a chair that struck Dr. Suresh on the back of his head, causing a bleeding injury above the neck. Two others followed suit, throwing additional chairs into the crowd and creating panic among villagers. In the melee, Idaikal Panchayat Vice President Dharmaraj, who intervened to protect organizers, was punched in the face by a quarry supporter. Reports indicate at least five participants, including villagers set to testify, were targeted in the assault.

"It is very clear that the crowd of people led by Vinoth Kumar and Arogiyasamy intended to violently disrupt the public hearing by their violent actions, threat and intimidation of the panel members and also aimed at others who had gathered to depose before the panel about the issues they face due to stone quarrying. Through their violent action, the aim of the group was to prevent the local villagers from exercising their fundamental right of free speech, assembly and association as guaranteed under article 19(1) of the Indian constitution and protection of human rights act and other laws. The aim was also to cause fear and apprehension in the minds of ordinary villagers so as to prevent them from complaining about the negative effects of mining before any authority or body," Jayaram Venkatesan, convener of Arappor Iyakkam stated in his complaint to the police.

The People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has strongly condemned the incident. The organisation described the incident as “a criminal act meant to suppress citizens’ fundamental rights to free speech and peaceful assembly,” guaranteed under Article 19(1) of the Constitution. It alleged that the attackers were “hired agents of the mining mafia” seeking to intimidate both the villagers and those legally challenging mining interests.