A day after the arrest of a Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) councillor and his three sons for the murder of Prabhu, a soldier from Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu, police have said that the crime occurred due to a petty dispute. Krishnagiri Superintendent of Police (SP) Saroj Kumar Takur said, “The victims and accused in the case are close blood relatives. It had absolutely no political angle, he said, adding, “The issue started with a petty dispute over a water tank on February 8. Chinnasami [the main accused] had an altercation with Kannammal [the victim’s mother] and Prabhakaran [the victim's brother].”

Prabhu, who is part of the military police, was grievously assaulted by a DMK councillor Chinnasamy and his sons on February 8 over a dispute regarding the use of a drinking water pipe. Prabhakaran had used the drinking water to wash clothes, to which the councillor had raised objections. 

The SP went on to say at Thursday’s press conference that on the evening of the incident, Chinnasamy and his relatives assaulted Prabhu, Prabhakaran and their father. “This is purely an assault case. Unfortunately, Prabhu passed away. As of today, all nine of the accused have been arrested.” On February 14, Prabhu succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital in Hosur.