CHENNAI: It is suspected that an attempt was made to perform human sacrifice at Arani in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. The police came and stopped the ritual after locals informed that a house in Dasarapettu had been closed for three days and had been practicing witchcraft. When the family refused to open the door, the police broke the door with a JCB and entered the house.

The locals were panicked in the wake of the human sacrifice news in Kerala. Following their complaint, police and tehsildar reached the spot and asked them to open the door, but the inmates refused to do so. The people inside shouted that if they tried to open the door, they would kill themselves by slitting their throats and the rituals should not be disturbed. When the family did not cooperate, the police sought the help of the fire brigade. Then they broke the door of the house with JCB and entered inside and caught the people. The inmates believed that Gomathi had been possessed by evil and the witchcraft was conducted under the guidance of her husband Prakash, a temple priest. The family members behaved very rudely to the police officers and locals who entered by breaking the door.

The preliminary conclusion is that they performed witchcraft using dolls. The police also said that it will be clear in further investigation whether there was an attempt of human sacrifice. The police arrested six people who were in the house.