The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a chargesheet towards 9 Tamil Nadu cops, together with then station home officer (SHO) of Sathankulam police station in Thoothukudi, for allegedly illegally selecting up and torturing P Jayaraj and J Bennicks all night time in June. The boys died in hospital.
The cost sheet names former SHO of Sathankulam police station S Sridhar, two sub-inspectors Okay Balakrishnan and P Raghuganesh, two head constables S Murugan and A Samadurai, and 4 constables M Muthuraja, S Chelladurai, X Thomas Francis and Veyil Muthu for legal conspiracy, homicide, wrongful confinement, destruction of proof and levelling false fees. All 9 are presently lodged in jail. Sub-inspector Pauldurai, whom the company arrested in July and who died in jail on account of Covid-19, has not been accused within the cost sheet however his function has been talked about within the alleged conspiracy, officers mentioned.
P Jayaraj (59) and his son J Bennicks (31) have been arrested on June 19 and lodged in Kovilpatti sub-jail for holding their cell phone store in the principle market of Sathankulam city open throughout a curfew imposed in the course of the Covid-19-induced lockdown.
The daddy and son have been allegedly tortured in the course of the police custody after which they have been admitted to the Kovilpatti authorities hospital on June 22. Whereas Bennicks died the identical night time, Jayaraj breathed his final on the morning of June 23.
The incident had led to huge public outrage throughout the nation with demand of motion towards the accused cops. The Tamil Nadu authorities ordered a CBI probe within the first week of July, after which a particular workforce was despatched to analyze the custodial demise.
CBI spokesperson R Okay Gaur mentioned, “A CBI workforce camped at Madurai and labored untiringly by way of Covid-19 pandemic.”
Actually, 9 CBI officers have been contaminated with Covid-19 whereas investigating the case.
Sharing particulars of cost sheet, Gaur mentioned, “The investigation revealed that the father-son duo have been arrested on June 19, 2020 and tortured on the Sathankulam police station by the accused within the night in addition to within the intervening night time, consequent to which each of them succumbed to the accidents and died within the intervening night time of June 22 and 23”.
Officers who didn’t want to be named added that Sathankulam police station officers, “to cowl up their misdeeds, not solely destroyed the proof of torture but additionally registered false circumstances towards each the deceased on the allegations that father and son had not closed their cellular store even after the permitted time and thereby violated common prohibitory orders.”
This officer added that function of others within the deaths in addition to subsequent cover-up is being additional investigated.
