K Armstrong murder case: Tamil Nadu Youth Congress leader arrested, expelled from party

N. Aswathaman | Photo credit: X / @Aswathamanasa

N. Aswathaman, a Tamil Nadu Congress party leader, has been arrested by the Sembium police in connection with the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader K. Armstrong. The BSP leader was murdered by a gang on July 5 near his house in Perambur.

A senior Chennai city police official said Aswathaman, who is the state general secretary of Tamil Nadu Youth Congress, was the son of Don Nagendran of north Chennai, who is in Puzhal jail.

Investigation revealed that Aswathaman, who is a lawyer, and Armstrong were already at enmity. A few months ago, Aswathaman had threatened him with a gun during an incident involving a land dispute at Morai near Sholavaram. Nagendran had recently been released on parole and had tried to intervene in the land dispute by contacting Armstrong, but the latter had avoided him, the police official added.

Based on the investigation conducted by the special police team with Aswathaman on Tuesday, he was arrested on Wednesday, August 7, 2024.

A total of 22 people, including Aswathaman, have been arrested so far in connection with the Armstrong murder case, one of whose accused, Thiruvengadam, was killed in an encounter with police near Madhavaram on July 14.

Expulsion

Ashwathaman was expelled from the list of primary members of the Tamil Nadu Youth Congress with immediate effect, following his arrest.

In a statement, Tamil Nadu Youth Congress president M Lenin Prasath said the decision was taken after his actions were “found to be inconsistent with the values ​​and principles of our party”. “The Tamil Nadu Youth Congress is committed to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and discipline within its ranks,” the statement said.

Sources in the Tamil Nadu Youth Congress said Mr Ashwathaman, who was one of the general secretaries (among 28 others) of the Tamil Nadu Youth Congress, was also the president of the National Students Union of India, the student wing of the Indian National Congress.