Sathankulam custodial deaths case: Death penalty awarded to all 9 police officers
The judge called the case a rare one where the police officers who were obligated to maintain law and order had themselves acted against the law and brutally assaulted two innocent men
In the Sathankulam custodial deaths case, the First Additional District and Sessions Court, Madurai, on Monday (April 6), awarded the death penalty to all nine police officers convicted for the murder of Jayaraj and his son, Bennix, in 2020.
The Federal was one of the first to carry the incident and cover extensively and even won the prestigious RedInk Award (2021) under the Human Rights Print category. You can read the story here. The Federal’s Prabhakar Tamilarasu has won the award for his incisive reportage on the horrific custodial deaths at Sathankulam in Tamil Nadu. The story narrated, rather exposed, how a man-son duo, who died in custody, was subjected to sexual torture at the police station. The incident sent shock waves across the state, and elsewhere.
In his remarks while passing the verdict, Judge G Muthukumaran said the case was a rare one where the police officers, who were obligated to maintain law and order, had themselves acted against the law and brutally assaulted the father and son, who did not have any criminal case against them.
Also read: The Federal wins RedInk Award for story on Sathankulam custodial deaths
The court has also ordered the police officers to pay a total compensation of Rs 1.40 crore to the family of the deceased.
The tragedy dates back to June 2020 during the coronavirus lockdown, 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.
Following a massive public outcry, the Madras HC took notice of the case, which was eventually investigated by the CBI.
You can read all of our Sathankulam arrticles here.