An 18-year-old youth was critically injured on Tuesday after being attacked at a temple festival in Kollam. He was assaulted by a gang of 5 after a procession at the Maruthady Devi Temple in Sakthikulangara. The injured, Harikrishnan (18), a native of Kunnathoor, has been admitted to the ventilator at a private hospital in Kollam.

According to the FIR, Harikrishnan was at the temple with his brother Jayakrishnan (23), and they were attacked when a group of men were provoked by the duo standing in front of them. The assault left Harikrishnan with bleeding in his brain, and he was taken to the Kollam district Hospital. He was later shifted to a private hospital and put on a ventilator.

The youths were on their way to the dining hall around midnight when two unknown individuals cursed at them and asked them to move away. After enquiring who they were, the accused took the two brothers to the side of the dining hall and forcefully struck Harikrishnan behind his neck. They then pushed him to the floor and began kicking him.

When Jayakrishnan intervened to stop them, he was also beaten up by one of the accused. He then ran out of fear and sought help from his brother-in-law, Rajesh. Although Rajesh arrived at the spot and attempted to settle the issue, one of the accused asked him who he was to question them and began attacking him as well. The first accused then continued the attack on Harikrishnan and hit him behind his head using a wooden block. He shouted, asking the others to kill him.

The Sakthikulangara police have registered a case against four unknown persons and one identifiable person under section 296(b), obscenity; section 126(2), wrongful restraint; section 115(2), voluntarily causing hurt; sections 118(1) & 118(2), voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons; section 109(1), attempt to murder; and section 3(5), common intention of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.