Tamil Nadu to hand over case of custodial deaths of father, son to CBI

Tamil Nadu government on Sunday said it has decided to hand over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) the case regarding alleged custodial deaths of a father and his son in Sathankulam in Thoothukudi district. The move is seen as a desperate measure to cool the tempers that have arisen due to the incident that has led to national outrage.

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, who had last week maintained that the duo died due to their existing medical conditions, said the government will seek the permission of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on June 30 to transfer the case to the CBI. The court had taken suo moto cognizance of the incident and has given specific instructions to the Kovilpatti Judicial Magistrate to carry out the inquest proceedings.

“The government has decided to hand over the case to the CBI. We will move the court during the next hearing seeking permission for the same,” Palaniswami told reporters on Sunday, as the custodial deaths led to national outrage.

The statement comes a day after the DMK threatened to move the court seeking a CBI inquiry if the government did not take necessary action.

However, political analysts feel the case has been put on the back-burner by the Tamil Nadu government which has decided to transfer it to the CBI, which will take time to take over and investigate. They pointed out that the Tamil Nadu Police was well-equipped to probe this “open and shut” case which establishes that the policemen who handled the father-son duo erred big time.

The announcement coincided with a statement from the Tamil Nadu Police that Sridhar, Inspector of the Sathankulam police station who was transferred out immediately after the incident, has been placed under suspension pending inquiry.

The controversy over the custodial deaths refused to die down as records maintained at the Kovilpatti sub-jail, where the father-son duo spent two days after being “tortured” in police custody, confirm that they did possess injuries when they were brought to the prison.

The records say the father and son had multiple marks on their buttocks – reinforcing claims by people close to the duo that they were sexually tortured by two policemen who took them forcibly.

P Jayaraj (61), and his son Emmanuel Bennix (31), were taken into custody by police in Sathankulam town in Thoothukudi district on June 19 following an argument over keeping their shops open beyond 9 pm.

The duo is alleged to have been tortured by police during custody and was shifted to the Kovilpatti sub-jail on June 21. However, the son died on June 22 and the father on June 23 triggering massive protests by family members and relatives.