Date | June 19–23, 2020 |
---|---|
Time | 7:45 PM IST, UTC+05:30 |
Location | Sathankulam, Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India. |
Deaths | P. Jayaraj (age 59) J. Benicks (age 31) |
Inquest | Three doctors conducted post-mortem in the presence of the judicial magistrate. The entire procedure was video-recorded. |
Arrests | Sreedhar Balakrishnan Raghu Ganesh. Murugan Muthu Raja SamaJiu Chelladurai Thomas Francis Veilumuthu Pauldurai |
Trial | Started on 18th February 2021 [1] |
Reason for arrest | Wrong confinement of Lockdown Violation [2] |
The arrest of shopkeepers P. Jeyaraj (59 years old) and his son J. Beniks (also spelled Fennix, Bennix) (31 years old) by the Tamil Nadu Police in Sathankulam, Thoothukudi district on 19 June 2020 and their subsequent sexual and physical abuse in custody resulted in their deaths three days later. The incident sparked strikes and protests by Sathankulam shopkeepers against police brutality, attracting significant media coverage and celebrity attention. [3] [4] The incident shone a light on the impunity of provincial policing in Tamil Nadu; the complicity of the courts in turning a blind eye to police corruption; the involvement of the members of the community policing initiative "Friends of the Police" in acts of police brutality; and the negligence of doctors conducting medical inspections of detainees. [5] In response to the outrage compensation was paid to affected family members; nine police officers were arrested, the remainder transferred to new locations, government support for the Friends of the Police organisation revoked, and an inquiry into the event handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
On 19 June 2020, at 7:30pm Jeyaraj was arrested at his workshop in Kamarajar Chowk by Sub-Inspector Balakrishnan, Inspector S Sridhar, Police Constable M. Muthuraja and other officials following an argument with police over allegations of violating COVID restrictions on trading hours (some reports state that their shop was open 15 minutes after curfew.
Between 7:30 and 7:45pm, Jeyaraj's son Beniks, who had a mobile stand near the Kamarajar statue, was told of his father's arrest, and went to the police station with a friend. Beniks was called in by the police while he was waiting outside. Once inside, he saw his father being pushed to the floor by Sub inspector Balakrishnan and beaten [6] resulting in an altercation between Beniks and Balakrishnan and police constable M. Muthuraja. The police subsequently confined Beniks inside the police station, and commenced beating him along with his father from 7:45pm, denying access to lawyers and friends who had gathered outside outside the police station. These witnesses reported that they heard the police shout "How you dare speak against the police".
The Central Bureau of Investigation chargesheet would state that the door of the police station was locked, with both Jeyaraj and Beniks being subjected to several rounds of beatings and torture from 7:45 pm and 3 am the next day. [7] [8] The first round continued until 9:45pm. Eyewitness would later report that violence inside the police station escalated after 11:30pm when Sub-Inspector Raghu Ganesh arrived. As per the CBI investigation, whenever there was a silence, the inspector used to urge the staff by asking about reasons for silence and thereby instigating them to start fresh rounds of beating. Police volunteers present inside the station also allegedly started assaulting the duo. During the ordeal, the clothes of victims were removed to add to the brutality of torture. [9] DNA samples from the blood splatters on the walls and floor of the room would later provide evidence of the brutal beating. [10]
On the morning of 20 June, the police took Jeyaraj and Beniks to Kovilpatti Hospital for medical fitness testing. In spite of requiring a change of six lungis due to the profuse bleeding from their rectums, a medical fitness certificate was provided by Doctor Vennila.
After that, they were taken to Sathankulam Magistrate D Saravanan, who remanded the injured duo in custody without examining their physical condition or speaking with them directly as the result of COVID protocols. D. Saravanan came out and stood at the balcony of his house when the team of police were standing around Jayaraj and Beniks at the entrance. Without following the protocol to examine for potential police brutality, D.Saravanan waved his hands to the police to take them away. [11] The two victims were subsequently taken to Kovilpatti sub-jail, located 100km from Sathankulam. Lawyers were not allowed to meet Beniks or his father until the evening of 20 June. [6] [12]
On 22 June 2020, while Beniks was undergoing treatment at Government Hospital, Kovilpatti, he died at 9:00 pm, due to heavy internal bleeding. P. Jeyaraj was admitted at Government Hospital, Kovilpatti by the authorities of Sub Jail, Kovilpatti on the same day at 10:30 pm. [13] At 4:30am on the following day, P. Jeyaraj died while undergoing treatment for a punctured lung. [14]
The same evening of Jeyaraj's death protests began amongst Sathankulam shopkeepers and the public began, spreading to the rest of Tamil Nadu the following day and resulting in the first media coverage of the incident. [15]
Following protests and media coverage of the deaths, on Wednesday 24 June, the Police Department suspended two sub inspectors and an inspector and transferred all Sathankulam police to other locations. [16] [17] [18]
In response to public outrage, the Madurai bench of Madras High Court took suo motu cognizance of the matter and on 24 June, a bench consisting of Justices P.N. Prakash and B. Pugalendhi called the Superintendent of Police, Thoothukudi before the court. The court ordered the Superintendent to inquire into the incident and submit an interim status report within two days. [19] The order included a requirementto videograph the autopsy, which was to be done by a panel of three experts in the presence of a magistrate [20] after the police completed its inquest proceedings.
Copies of both reports of the autopsy and inquest were submitted to the high court. State Human Rights Commission Tamil Nadu has taken suo motu cognizance of the offence and asked the Police Department to file a reply in this regard. [21]
” Reeling from what I'm hearing. Absolutely stunned, sad, and angry. No human being deserves such brutality, whatever be their crime. The guilty must not be allowed to go unpunished. We need facts. I cannot even begin to imagine what the family must be going through. Sending strength and prayers. We need to use our collective voices to seek #JusticeForJayarajandBennicks”
— Priyanka Chopra wrote on Twitter [22]
Celebrities, politicians, and several notable people used social media to reveal the details of the attack and condemn the police action. Within three days of the deaths hundreds of thousands of tweets were sent out using the hashtag "#JusticeforJayarajandBennix", which was among the top Twitter topics trending in India on 26 June 2020 and among the top 30 trending globally. [23] [24] Celebrities, including Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Suchitra, Siddharth, Khushbu, Jayam Ravi, Karthik Subbaraj, D. Imman, Suriya used the hashtag. [25] [26] Jignesh Mevani, a social activist and lawyer from Gujarat in western India, wrote on Twitter that "The George Floyd of India are far too many". [27] [28] Film director Hari issued a statement condemning police brutality and expressing regret for glorifying policemen in five of his films. [29] [30]
Kanimozhi, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha for the Thoothukudi Constituency said the incident was a collective failure of police and other officials and a gross violation of human rights. [31] [32] On 28 June, The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami directed that the inquest into the deaths be handed over to the CBI. [33] [34]
” What has happened in Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi district is worse than the Nirbhaya case for which four persons involved were hanged early this year. ”
— Retired Judge of Supreme Court of India Markandey Katju wrote on The Week [35]
During the pendency of the autopsy inquiry, Magistrate M S Bharathidasan submitted a report to the High Court describing rude behaviour by Constable Maharajan at the Sathankulam police station. In the report, the Magistrate said Constable Maharajan made a “very disparaging remark” against him in the presence of D Kumar, Additional Superintendent of Police and C Prathapan, Deputy Superintendent of Police, even as policemen at the station recorded the videos of the proceeding. [36]
Following the complaint, the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court began a suo motu contempt of court proceeding and ordered the Inspector General of Police for the South Zone to take action against the officers. The Inspector General suspended Maharajan; D Kumar, ADSP, and C Prathapan, DSP was moved to a waiting list. The High Court also directed the Thoothukudi district collector to depute revenue officials and take control of the police station to enable the magistrate to collect the necessary documents. This incident represents the first time in the history of Indian Police that a district administration had seized control of a police station. The judges further directed the Additional Director of Forensic Sciences department to send a team of experts to collect materials from the station. [37]
Central Bureau of Investigation had registered two cases on 7 July 2020 related to the allegations of custodial death. On the request of Tamil Nadu Government & further notification from Govt of India, and taken over the investigation of both the cases, earlier registered vide Crime no. 649 & 650 at Police Station Kovilpatti. A CBI team camped continuously at Madurai and worked in the case during COVID-19 pandemic. During the investigation 10 police officials including Inspector/SHO, 3 Sub inspector, 2 HC, 4 Constables, all of Sathankulam Police Station were arrested. The CBI had filed a chargesheet on 26.09.2020 against all arrested police officials U/s 120-B of IPC r/w sections 302, 342, 201, 182, 193, 211, 218 & 34 & substantive offences. One more accused, Sub Inspector Palthurai died during investigation due to COVID-19. [38] [39]
On 8 July 2020, the Office of the Additional Chief Secretary issued an order disbanding the Friends of Police movement in the whole of Tamil Nadu. [40] This reversed an earlier order issued in 1994, which extended the Friends of Police movement to the whole state of Tamil Nadu.[ citation needed ]
Ettayapuram is a panchayat town in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the birthplace of Tamil poets Mahakavi Bharathiar and Umaru Pulavar. Muthuswami Dikshitar, one of the triads of Carnatic music, was patronized in his final years by the ruler of Ettayapuram.
Aruppukottai is a town and a municipality in Virudhunagar district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. Aruppukottai's classical name is "Sengattu Aravakotai". Aruppukottai is about 50 km from Madurai. It is in the middle of Madurai-Tuticorin National Highways NH-38. The villages and towns surrounding Aruppukottai makes this as a major town as well as a major transit hub and they are also famous for production of jasmine. Aruppukottai is always famous for producing yarn. Sri Ramana Maharishi was born in Tiruchuli near Aruppukottai town. Aruppukottai was part of king Sethupathi of Ramnad. King Sethupathi has Zamin Palace in Palyampatti. As of 2011, the town had a population of 87,722. The town also hosts two famous temples – Arulmigu Meenakshi Chokkanatha Swamy Temple built in 13th century by Pandiya King Maravarma Sundarapandiyan and Seenivasa Perumal Temple Built on the top of Malai arasan Hill.
Thoothukudi is a port city, a municipal corporation, and an industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city lies on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. Thoothukudi is the capital and headquarters of Thoothukudi district. It is located about 590 kilometres southeast of Chennai, 190 kilometres northeast of Thiruvananthapuram, and 580 kilometres southeast of Bengaluru. According to the Confederation of Indian Industry, Thoothukudi has the second highest Human Development Index in Tamil Nadu, next to Chennai. Thoothukudi City serves as the headquarters of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Limited, one of the leading private sector banks in India. Major educational establishments in the city include the Government Thoothukudi Medical College, Fisheries College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Maritime Academy, V.O. Chidambaram College, Kamaraj College, Anna University, and Government Polytechnic College. The V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority is one of the major ports in India. Thoothukudi is an emerging energy and industrial hub of South India.
Tamil Nadu Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the state of Tamil Nadu, India. It is over 150 years old and is the fifth largest state police force in India. Tamil Nadu has a police-population ratio of 1:632. The Director General of the Tamil Nadu police is Shankar Jiwal.
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Sathankulam is a panchayat town in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
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Basilica of Our Lady of Snows, Thoothukudi, is a minor basilica located at Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the Catholic pilgrimage centers in India dedicated to the Our Lady of Snows, a title given to Mother Mary. Even to this day, the Coastal People fondly call her Santa Maria Das Nevis(Senhora, Das Nevis), which means Our Lady of Snows in Portuguese. The shrine name refers to the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. The site is known for Portuguese architecture and Portuguese prayers and now it is recognised as a Tamil Nadu notable pilgrim site.
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Thoothukudi massacre denotes events that took place on 22 and 23 May 2018 in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, India. The violence took place during an ongoing protest against proposed expansion of a copper smelter plant run by Sterlite Corporation in Thoothukudi town. Police opened fire on the protesters, killed 13 people and left 102 injured. Several policemen were also injured during the protests.
Custodial deaths in India may refer to the deaths in police custody and also to the deaths of persons in judicial custody while undergoing trial or serving a sentence. In the financial year 2021–22, the National Human Rights Commission of India reported 2152 deaths had occurred in judicial custody and 155 deaths had occurred in police custody till 28 February 2022. According to a report released by National Campaign Against Torture (NCAT), there were 1606 deaths in 2019 which occurred in judicial custody and 125 death occurred in police custody. On 26 July 2022, while answering a question in the Lok Sabha Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai revealed that 4484 cases of custodial deaths were reported in India during the period FY 2020-21 to FY 2021-22
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