8 held in TN after Dalit made to bow before Vanniyar 'Guru' banner

Chennai, July 2 (IANS) Eight men were arrested in Tamil Nadu's Nagapattinam district after a Dalit youth was forced to prostrate before a banner of the Vanniyar community's spiritual leader, "Kaduvettu Guru", police said on Friday.The youth, who was forced to prostrate before the flex banner after he had allegedly created a derogatory video about the Guru and shared it on social media platforms including Instagram, was also arrested by the Thalaignayiru police. He will be prodced before the Juvenile Justice Board.Police arrested the eight youths after a video of their act in Vandal village in Nagapattinam on Thursday went viral.The leader of the gang is seen explaining in the video as to why the youth was forced to prostrate before the banner of the Vanniyar spiritual guru. "We have been living in communal harmony in this Vandal village for years and this boy was trying to trigger a communal clash by abusing the spiritual guru of the 2.5 crore Vanniyar population. So he is apologising for that," he was heard to say.The man was also seen advising the youth not to indulge in such activities in the future, concentrate on his education and to take care of his family.
--IANS aal/vd