Hyderabad: As many as 17 remand prisoners escaped from the Thekkampatti sub-jail in Tamil Nadu's Theni district late Monday (October 26) night after allegedly assaulting a prison guard who entered their cell in response to a fake medical emergency reported by inmates.
By Tuesday (October 27) morning, police had arrested four of the escapees — Silambarasan, Praveen Kumar, Raja Sikandar and Rajkumar. The Tamil Nadu Police have formed 17 special teams to track down the remaining prisoners.
The incident is among the largest prison breaks in Tamil Nadu in around three decades. In a similar incident, 43 suspected militants belonging to the now-defunct Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) escaped from a special camp inside the 460-year-old Vellore Fort after digging a 153-foot-long tunnel in Tippu Mahal.
The escape came to light on August 15, 1995, when one of the fugitives bit a cyanide capsule and died instantly after being stopped by a police officer on patrol in Chennai. LTTE militants were known for carrying cyanide capsules and biting them when confronted by security forces.
Prison personnel injured in Monday night's incident are undergoing treatment at the Theni Government Medical College Hospital, police said.
As Theni shares a border with Kerala, police in the neighbouring state have also been alerted. Search operations are underway in forest areas in Tamil Nadu and Kerala's Idukki district.
The jailbreak comes as the government led by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay faces criticism from Opposition parties over what they describe as a deteriorating law and order situation in Tamil Nadu. The Opposition has raised concerns over reported increases in sexual assault cases involving women and children, as well as incidents of missing children. (with inputs from media agency)