A 32-year-old man in Mettupalayam was arrested on Sunday, March 26, for hurling a petrol bomb and pretending he was being targeted to get a posting in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The man, identified as Vishwanathan, claimed he was a BJP cadre and alleged that two people had hurled petrol bombs at him on Saturday, March 25. He has been working as a supervisor in a bakery for the past eight months. According to reports, Vishwanathan applied online to become a member of the BJP four months ago.
On the night of Saturday, at 9:30 pm, Vishwanathan called the Mettupalayam police station and claimed that the Mettupalayam BJP President Uma Shankar and another BJP member named Sathish had thrown the petrol bombs at him. When the police rushed to Vishwanathan’s house, they discovered a white shirt that was burnt completely. The police became suspicious after they found no injuries on Vishwanathan and conducted a probe. The police arrested Vishwanathan on Sunday.
During the investigation, he confessed that he was upset at not being given any party posting in the past four months. He hurled the petrol bombs at himself hoping that the incident would have caught the attention of the BJP leadership and he might have gotten a posting. According to reports, the police said they accessed CCTV footage from a petrol bunk on Annur road where Vishwanathan was seen buying petrol in a bottle.
The police have registered a case against Vishwanathan under various sections of the Indian Penal Code including 153 (provocation with the intent to cause riot), 203 (giving false information regarding an offence), 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke) and 505 (i) (statements conducing to public mischief). He has been remanded in judicial custody.