Custodial deaths in 2020: Death penalty for 9 TN cops, Pg9

Key Highlights:

• Nine police personnel were sentenced to death on Monday by a Madurai court for the 2020 custodial deaths of P Jayaraj and his son J Benicks in Sathankulam, Tamil Nadu.
• The convicted include then inspector S Sridhar, sub-inspectors K Balakrishnan and P Raghu Ganesh, head constables S Murugan and A Samadurai, and constables M Muthuraja, S Chelladurai, X Thomas Francis and S Vailmuthu.
• The CBI filed its chargesheet on September 25, 2020, and a supplementary chargesheet on August 12, 2022, after the Madras High Court took suo motu cognisance of the case on June 24, 2020.
• Jayaraj and Benicks were allegedly assaulted in custody for violating Covid-19 lockdown rules in June 2020, leading to their deaths days later.

Detailed Insights:

• The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court ordered a judicial inquiry due to distrust of the local police, directing the CB-CID to investigate until the CBI took over the case.
• Investigations revealed that Jayaraj was picked up on June 19, 2020, for allegedly violating lockdown rules, despite evidence suggesting he did not violate any rules.
• Evidence indicated a cover-up, including cleaning blood from the police station floor and discarding blood-stained clothes, along with obtaining a false "fit for remand" certificate.
• The High Court had directed the trial to be completed within six months in March 2021, but extensions were granted due to vacancies and other constraints.
• The custodial deaths triggered widespread protests, highlighting concerns about police brutality and the need for police reforms.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Custodial Death: Death of a person while in the custody of police or judicial authorities.
• Suo Motu Cognisance: The power of a court to take up a matter on its own, without waiting for a formal complaint.
• CB-CID: Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department, a specialized investigation unit of the state police.