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Sathankulam custodial death: Madurai court gives death penalty to 9 cops, CBI says was given case for ‘fair’ probe
The verdict came almost 6 years after P Jayaraj and his son J Bennix were allegedly assaulted by the convicted policemen in Sathankulam in Thoothukudi district.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday reacted to the judgment of a Madurai court in the custodial death of a father-son duo in Tamil Nadu, after the court sentenced nine police officials of the Santhankulam police station to death.
The verdict came almost six years after P Jayaraj and his son J Bennix were allegedly assaulted by the convicted policemen in Sathankulam in Thoothukudi district, for allegedly keeping their mobile shop open in violation of COVID-19 norms.
Following a massive public outcry, the Madurai bench of the Madras high court took notice of the case, which was eventually investigated by the CBI.
The CBI said the case was handed over to it by the Tamil Nadu government for a fair investigation.
“The case dates back to 19.06.2020, wherein the accused police officials of Santhankulam PS had wrongfully confined P.Jeyraj. His son Benniks, who went to the police station to enquire as to why his father was detained, was also confined after some altercation. Thereafter, father and son were mercilessly beaten and brutally tortured by the accused police officials during the intervening night of 19 and 20th June 2020. Benniks succumbed to injuries on 22nd and Jeyraj on 23rd June. The case was transferred to CBI for fair investigation by the state govt. of Tamil Nadu,” CBI said in a statement.
The agency also added that after a thorough investigation, it filed the charge sheet against nine accused within 90 days.
The judgement
In a landmark judgment, a Madurai court on Monday handed the death penalty to nine police personnel in the 2020 Sathankulam custodial death case.
First additional district and sessions judge G Muthukumaran classified the case as the rarest of rare, observing that those entrusted with protecting the public had committed a crime that shook the collective conscience of society.
The court sentenced all nine convicted police personnel to death for the murders of Jayaraj and Bennix.
The convicts include former inspector S Sridhar, former sub-inspectors Balakrishnan and Raghu Ganesh, and head constables Murugan and Saamidurai.
In addition to the death penalty, the court imposed a combined fine of ₹1.40 crore on the convicts, to be paid as compensation to the victims’ family.
While pronouncing the quantum of sentence, the judge said the police are meant to protect the common man, and when they become the perpetrators of such brutality, the law must act as a deterrent. It also noted that by killing both the father and the son at once, the police had uprooted the very foundation of a family.
The judge stressed that the punishment must be severe enough to ensure such horrors never recur.
The tragedy dates back to June 2020, when Jayaraj and Bennix were picked up for allegedly keeping their mobile phone shop open beyond permitted hours.
They were subjected to extreme physical assault while in custody, leading to their deaths at a hospital days later.
A total of 105 witnesses were examined over a five-year period. Of the initial 10 accused, special sub-inspector Pauldurai died during the trial due to health complications.
