Bombing and Assassination Case in Puducherry: NIA Files Charge Sheet Against 13 Accused

In the bomb explosion case involving the murder of a political official in Villianur (Puducherry), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has filed a charge sheet identifying 13 individuals.

On March 26, 2023, Senthul Kumaran was attacked by six motorcycle-mounted attackers who threw homemade explosives at him in front of a bakery in the Puducherry union territory’s Villianur. The victim was immediately killed when the suspects attacked him with machetes.

An original case was filed by the local police, which was then transferred to NIA and re-filed as RC-06/2023/NIA/DLI on April 29, 2023.

Nithyanandam, the main conspirator in the case, and his accomplices Vignesh, Siva Sankar, Raja, Pradap, Karthikeyan, Vengatesh, Rajamani, Ezhumalai, Kathirvel, Ramachandiran, Lakshmanan, Dhilipan, and Ramanathan were subsequently apprehended.

In the charge sheet submitted by the NIA today, all of them—aside from Ramanathan—have been identified under different IPC, Arms Act, Explosive Substances Act, and UA(P) Act provisions.

According to the NIA probe, Nithiyanantham planned the assault on Senthil Kumaran in order to instill fear among the villagers of Villianur and the adjacent districts.

As part of the plot, Nithiyanantham established a terrorist group to produce domestic explosives and acquired the machetes needed to carry out the vicious assault.

Nithiyanantham had assigned Kathirvel to spy on Senthil Kumaran in Villianur as part of the plot. The primary suspect sent the six assailants—Vignesh, Siva Sankar, Raja, Pradeep, Karthikeyan, and Vengatesh—on three motorbikes to carry out the assassination when Senthil’s location in the vicinity was established.

The accused had concealed the car, the blood-stained machetes used in the murder, as well as their blood-stained clothing after the deadly assault. Based on their disclosures, these objects were found during the inquiry and retrieved.