A late-night dispute over playing music turned violent at the popular tourist destination of Varkala in the Kerala capital, leaving a 19-year-old tourist from Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu seriously injured with multiple stab wounds on Monday. Two others also sustained injuries in the clash.

The Varkala police have apprehended two local youths, including a minor, while a search is underway for a third suspect.

According to the police, the injured, identified as Sudarsan, was part of a 14-member tourist group that had arrived from Tamil Nadu for vacation. The incident occurred around 10.45 p.m. when Sudarsan and two of his friends, Satheesh, 17, and Kumudhan, 19, were walking near the Varkala Cliff to experience the local nightlife. The trio was listening to music on a portable Bluetooth speaker they were carrying with them.

Soon, a group of local youths intercepted the visitors and objected to the music being played. The confrontation quickly escalated from a verbal argument into a physical assault, the police added.

During the altercation, the local youths brutally assaulted the visitors, the police said. While one of the accused blocked and slapped Kumudhan, another suspect dragged Satheesh to the ground and repeatedly punched him. Sudarsan, who was pinned against a wire fence, was allegedly stabbed multiple times with a knife on the right side of his abdomen, back and shoulder.

Condition critical

He is undergoing emergency medical treatment at the Thiruvananthapuram Government Medical College Hospital, where his is condition remains critical, the police said.

Those taken into custody include Muhammed Ali, 18, of Kurakkanni in Varkala, and a minor accomplice.

The Varkala police have registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including charges for attempted murder, wrongful restraint, voluntarily causing hurt and criminal acts committed with common intention.