Chennai, March 26 (IANS) Following the death of an alleged chain snatcher in police firing, Greater Chennai City Police Commissioner, A. Arun, stated on Wednesday that the cops fired in self-defence.
Commissioner A. Arun said that the accused in a chain snatching case, identified as Jaffar, opened fire on the cops and was killed in retaliatory firing.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, the Commissioner said that Jaffar had led a police team to an abandoned plot near Taramani railway station at around 2:30 am on Wednesday.
He reportedly claimed to have hidden the stolen jewellery and the motorbike used in the crimes at the location.
According to the police, upon reaching the spot, Jaffar suddenly retrieved a concealed country-made pistol from the bike and opened fire at the policemen.
Despite being warned to stop, he continued firing, prompting the police to return fire in self-defence.
Jaffar sustained injuries in the exchange and was rushed to a nearby private hospital. However, he died en route. His body has been sent to the Royapettah Government Hospital for post-mortem.
Further investigation is underway in the case.
Commissioner Arun clarified that three police personnel had accompanied Jaffar to the site.
The police have recovered six gold chains from the location.
Officials are also verifying whether the motorbike —bearing a Karnataka registration number — was stolen or belonged to the accused.
Commissioner Arun revealed that Jaffar and two other arrested individuals are allegedly part of a gang operating out of Mumbai.
The accused have multiple pending cases registered against them in various local police stations.
Of the three arrested, two are residents of Mumbai, while the third hails from the Bidar district of Karnataka.
The investigation began after six chain snatching incidents were reported in Chennai on the same day. Police examined CCTV footage from 56 locations to track the culprits.
Based on surveillance footage and preliminary enquiries, investigators suspected the accused were not from Tamil Nadu.
Hence, authorities at the airport and railway stations were immediately alerted.
According to the police statement, airport officials informed them that two men had attempted to purchase last-minute tickets to Hyderabad.
One of the men lacked proper identification and was unable to buy a ticket.
As a precaution, police requested that the Hyderabad-bound flight be held back from departure.
The duo — later identified as Jaffar and Misamum — then bought tickets to Mumbai and were subsequently arrested at the airport.
Further interrogations led police to a third conspirator, Salman Hussain, who had boarded the Pinakini Express from Chennai Central Railway Station.
He was arrested by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) at Ongole station in Andhra Pradesh.
All three suspects reportedly confessed to their involvement in the chain snatching incidents.
Jaffar’s death adds to a growing number of alleged encounter killings in Tamil Nadu, a practice that has drawn criticism from human rights groups who accuse the police of overreach and brutality.
In July 2024, Thiruvengatam — an accused in the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Tamil Nadu President K. Armstrong — was shot dead by police.
In September, Kakathoppu Balaji, a known history-sheeter, was also killed in a similar incident.
A week later, another individual named “Seizing” Raja, initially believed to be connected to Armstrong’s murder, was also shot dead.
Police later confirmed that Raja had no links to the case.
Raja’s wife had released a video after his arrest, asserting that he had been with her at the time of the murder and was innocent.
These consecutive encounter killings have drawn scrutiny from the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC), which has summoned Commissioner Arun to provide an explanation.
Notably, during his media briefing after assuming office on July 7, 2024, Commissioner Arun had declared that the police would “deal with rowdies in the language they understand.”
–IANS
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