How cops involved in custodial death were promoted, high court asks Tamil Nadu govt

MADURAI: Wondering how eight police personnel involved in the custodial death of a man at Madurai's Anna Nagar police station in 2014 were either promoted or allowed to retire, Madras high court has directed the director-general of police to initiate criminal and departmental action against all of them. It also directed the CB-CID to file a final report in the case without waiting for sanction.
Justice B Pugalendhi issued the orders on a nine-year-old petition filed by Maheswari, who said her husband Esakki Muthu died of brutal custodial torture at Anna Nagar police station in Madurai on July 21, 2014.
Though six of the eight erring cops were facing criminal cases, they got promoted and allowed to retire too.
Sakthivel, the then assistant commissioner of Anna Nagar range was allowed to retire. Whereas, the then inspector of police (Anna Nagar) has since been promoted as deputy superintendent of police, Porur, Coimbatore, and the then inspector (K Pudur) Chakkaravarthy has since been promoted as assistant commissioner of police, control room, Madurai city. Others are: V P Saravanan, constable, Mathigiri police station, Krishnagiri district, Murugesan, SSI, Ramanathapuram district and the then SSI Baskaran, who has since retired.
In her plea, Maheshwari said Esakki Muthu was picked up from his Madurai home by Anna Nagar police, who assaulted him brutally while in custody. He was then named as an accused in a murder case and remanded in judicial custody. Within a few days in custody at Dindigul district prison, he died on July 21, 2014 due to injuries.
A judicial magistrate, who held inquiry, concluded that Esakki Muthu indeed died due to custodial torture. Based on the report, the govt had paid a compensation of Rs 5lakh to the family. Maheswari filed the present petition in 2015 seeking compensation and action against the police officials responsible for her husband's death.
In his order, Justice Pugalendhi directed the govt to provide scholarship to Maheshwari's children for their studies, and deprecated the manner in which police department had attempted to safeguard the erring officials and the attempts made by the department to defeat Maheshwari's claim.
He said failure to take stringent action against the erring police personnel would encourage further acts of custodial torture in future. The judge also observed that Tamil Nadu had a long history of police excesses. Citing data from the Lok Sabha, he said 478 deaths of men in police custody had been reported between 2016 and 2022 (upto Feb 28).
"Some police officers are under the impression that the investigation can be done only by torture. This attitude needs to be mended. Even after many years of Independence, the scenario has not changed," the judge observed.
Lathi and arms are given to police to safeguard themselves as well as the general public, and not to be used as weapon to torture people or offenders, he said.