Alexraj vs The State of Tamilnadu, Rep
- Court
- Madras High Court
2026:MHC:2802
Crl.MP(MD) Nos.15233 of 2025, etc., batch
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT
RESERVED ON : 19.06.2026
PRONOUNCED ON : 13.07.2026
CORAM
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE B.PUGALENDHI
Crl.MP(MD) Nos.15233, 15877, 19074 of 2025; 1309 of 2026
in
Crl.A(MD) Nos.1133, 1164, 1305, 1231 of 2025
Alexraj ... Petitioner in
Crl.MP(MD) No.15233/2025
Ravichandran ... Petitioner in
Crl.MP(MD) No.15877/2025
Sathishkumar ... Petitioner in
Crl.MP(MD) No.19074/2025
Ravichandran ... Petitioner in
Crl.MP(MD) No.1309/2026
Vs
The State of Tamilnadu,
Rep. by the Superintendent of Police,
CB CID,
Madurai Town,
Madurai.
Crime No.2/2019 ... Respondent
in all petitions
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Common Prayer:- Criminal Miscellaneous Petitions filed under Section
430 of BNSS, 2023 to suspend the sentence imposed on the petitioners in
SC.No.289 of 2021, dated 26.09.2025 passed by the learned Judge, V
Additional District and Sessions Court, Madurai and enlarge them on
bail pending disposal of the appeal.
For Petitioner : Mr.M.Jegadeesh Pandian
in Crl.MP(MD).15233/2025
: Mr.T.Antony Arulraj
in Crl.MP(MD).15877/2025
: Mr.T.Lajapathi Roy,
Senior Counsel
for Mr.M.Mahendran Varman
in Crl.MP(MD).19074/2025
: Mr.N.Ananthapadmanabhan,
Senior Counsel
for M/s.APN Law Associates
in Crl.MP(MD).1309/2026
For Respondent : Mr.A.Robinson
Government Advocate (Crl. side)
(in all petitions)
*
COMMON ORDER
The petitioners / Accused Nos.1 to 4 in SC.No.289 of 2021 are
police officers who have been charged for the offence under Sections 343
and 304(ii) IPC, that they have inflicted custodial violence on an accused
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in their custody and caused his death. The IV Additional District and
Sessions Court, Madurai, by order dated 26.09.2025, found them guilty,
convicted and sentenced to undergo one year rigorous imprisonment
with a fine of Rs.2,000/-, in default, to undergo four months simple
imprisonment for the offence under Section 343 IPC and to undergo ten
years rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs.10,000/-, in default, to
undergo one year simple imprisonment for the offence under Section
304(ii) IPC. Separate appeals have been filed by the petitioners / A1 to
A4 as against the judgment of conviction and sentence and those appeals
were admitted by this Court. Along with the appeals, the petitioners
have filed these applications for grant of suspension of sentence. Since
all the applications are arising out of the conviction in SC.No.289 of 2021,
these applications are heard together and are disposed of by way of this
common order.
2.The case of the prosecution is that the deceased/ one Muthu
Karthick [aged 17 years] was a suspect in a theft case in Crime No.9 of
2019 registered by the S.S.Colony Crime Police Station where the
accused persons were working. On 13.01.2019, the deceased was taken
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into custody by the accused police officers and held in custody till
16.01.2019, illegally, by keeping him at three different police stations.
During this illegal custody, the deceased was subjected to custodial
torture by the accused persons. As the deceased did not confess to the
crime, another case in Crime No.24 of 2019 was registered against him
on 16.01.2019 for the offence under Sections 387 and 506(II) of the IPC
and the deceased was taken for medical examination to the Government
Rajaji Hospital, Madurai at around 06.30 pm. Thereafter, the deceased
was produced before the Chairman, Juvenile Justice Board (JM III),
Madurai. The deceased was released on bail at around 08.00 pm on
16.01.2019 with a condition to appear before the Juvenile Justice Board
on 18.01.2019. At around 10.30 pm, on the very same day, the deceased
was admitted at Vijayaraja Speciality Hospital complaining of illness and
the deceased was shifted to the Government Rajaji Hospital on
18.01.2019. Thereafter, the deceased took treatment for renal injuries and
died due to cardiopulmonary arrest on 24.01.2019 at 10.00 am. The
mother of the deceased has lodged a complaint to the S.S.Colony Police
Station on 25.01.2019 regarding the same and it was registered as CSR
No.53 of 2019. The body of the deceased was handed over to her without
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conducting post mortem, since she has provided a statement that the
deceased had died of natural causes.
3.Thereafter, the mother of the deceased has filed WP(MD)No.
5143 of 2019 seeking transfer of investigation to the CB-CID, claiming
that her son died due to the injuries caused by the police in their illegal
custody. This Court, by its order dated 08.03.2019, directed exhumation
and post-mortem of the body of the deceased. Subsequently, the
complaint of the mother of the deceased was registered as a case of
suspicious death on 09.03.2019 in Crime No.189 of 2019 by the
S.S.Colony Police Station. This Court, by its order dated 26.03.2019,
transferred the investigation to the CB-CID with a direction to form a
team headed by an IPS Officer. Accordingly, the CB-CID, Madurai has
taken over the case and registered an FIR in Crime No.2 of 2019 for the
above occurrence on 26.04.2019. The post-mortem of the deceased was
conducted on 11.03.2019 and as per the post-mortem report, twenty five
contusions were found on the body of the deceased and they were
sufficient enough to cause his death. Therefore, the provisions were
altered to Sections 343 and 304(ii) of the IPC and the petitioners were
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identified as the police officers who had illegally detained and inflicted
custodial torture on the deceased.
4.Learned Senior Counsel / Counsel appearing for the
petitioners pray that the petitioners be released on bail and their
contentions, in support of the same, are summarised hereunder:
(i)The case of the prosecution is circumstantial and they have
not established a clear chain of events. The illegal custody of the
deceased by the accused persons was not proved and no materials were
collected to establish that the accused had assaulted the deceased.
Further, even as per the oral dying declaration of the deceased, he was in
illegal custody of the accused at four different police stations. However,
no police officer in these stations was examined as witness and no CCTV
footage was collected to establish the illegal custody.
(ii)The weightage given to the oral dying declaration of the
deceased is irrational as it was witnessed by the mother of the deceased
and the same is not reliable.
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(iii)The deceased was arrested in connection with Crime No.24
of 2019 on 16.01.2019 and was produced before one Dr.Ramanan (PW57)
at the Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai, by two constables
belonging to the S.S.Colony Police Station. The Doctor, after examining
the deceased, has issued a certificate that there was no injury on the
deceased and the same was marked as Ex.P38. Thereafter, the
Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board has also examined the
deceased through her Assistant and recorded that there was no injuries.
However, the deceased was admitted in a private hospital by PW1 and
from the private hospital, he was referred to the Government Rajaji
Hospital on 18.01.2019. The trial Court, without considering these
material facts on the nature of injury, has arrived at a conclusion that
there were injuries on the deceased and the same was caused by these
petitioners.
(iv)The post-mortem of the deceased was conducted two
months after his burial and even as per the post-mortem report, the skin
and soft tissues in the body was decomposed. Hence, the findings that
twenty five contusions were found on the body of the deceased are not
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reliable. Further, the deceased was found to be suffering from Hepatitis
B virus during his treatment and the same can lead to kidney problems.
Therefore, the medical evidence does not support the case of the
prosecution.
(v)There are discrepancies in the evidence provided by the
witnesses. According to the evidence of one Sri @ Narendran / PW37
who was a friend of the deceased, he was taken to Pandalkudi by the
police officers, made a phone call to the deceased who asked them to
come to the Second Stop, the phone of the deceased was switched off
after the same and they returned to the S.S.Colony Police Station.
However, the evidence of the mother of the deceased / PW1 is
contradictory to the same and according to her testimony, the deceased
was abducted by the Accused on 13.01.2019 with the help of the said Sri
@ Narendran. However, the mother of the deceased has also stated that
when she went to Pandalkudi to search for the deceased on 15.01.2019,
the watchman, namely one Jeyaraman informed her that the deceased
had come to work in the morning but did not return in the evening.
Therefore, the abduction of the deceased on 13.01.2019 was not
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established. Further, the deceased was taken in a Tata Sumo Car as per
the prosecution case, but the driver of this car was not examined as
witness.
5.Learned Government Advocate (Crl.Side) appearing for the
respondent police vehemently opposed the grant of bail to the
petitioners. According to him, the accused, who were serving as police
officers, have illegally detained the deceased / a juvenile without
informing the same to his lawful guardians, registered a false case to
justify such detention, inflicted custodial torture on the deceased and
caused his death. The prosecution has established unbroken chain of
circumstances and proved the guilt of the petitioners beyond reasonable
doubt. During the trial, the prosecution has examined 89 witnesses and
marked 183 documents and 9 material objects. The case of the
prosecution was established by the dying declaration of the deceased,
which was witnessed by his mother / PW1 and was accepted by the trial
Court under Section 32(1) of the Indian Evidence Act. He further
submitted that the post-mortem report had found twenty five contusions
on the body of the deceased and the Assistant Professor, Department of
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General Surgery, Madurai Medical College provided a report that the
cause of death of the deceased was “Acute Renal Injury / Assault with
Multiple Injuries”. Further, the injuries and swelling on the deceased
were observed by his parents and relatives. Therefore, the case of the
prosecution is supported by medical evidence.
6.Further, he submitted that the accused / police personnel
have misused their authority to prevent the registration of a case
regarding the above occurrence and immediate post-mortem of the
deceased and attempted to suppress the medico-legal evidence in this
case. The petitioners have also violated the mandatory safeguards under
the Juvenile Justice Act. According to him, the petitioners are police
personnel and if they are released on bail, then they might intimidate the
witnesses and interfere with the administration of justice. Therefore, he
prayed for dismissal.
7.When these petitions were taken up for hearing, the defacto
complainant / mother of the victim has filed applications to permit her as
a party to this proceedings, as some facts have to be narrated before this
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Court. Since this is a case of custodial death of a Juvenile, this Court
permitted and heard Mr.Henry Tipange, learned Counsel for the defacto
complainant.
8.Learned Counsel appearing for the defacto complainant
submitted that the accused police officers are habitual offenders and
they have faced several disciplinary proceedings. According to him,
there are several incriminating materials which shows that the
defacto
petitioners have illegally detained the son of the complainant,
inflicted severe custodial torture upon him and it was due to the injuries
caused by such torture that the son of the defacto complainant passed
away. He has made the following contentions in support of the same:
(i)The visible injury marks on the deceased and his torn clothes
was observed by the mother of the deceased / PW1 while taking him for
a bath on 16.01.2019. Thereafter, he has narrated the illegal detention and
custodial torture inflicted on him to his mother. The father of the
deceased has provided evidence that his son returned with injuries and
was unable to walk properly. Further, the deceased has informed his
aunt, one Jeyapratha / PW27 that he went to meet a friend near a tea
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stall, that police officers covered his face with a cloth, tied his hands and
assaulted him.
(ii)The trial Court found that the Government Rajaji Hospital,
Madurai has provided information regarding the death of the defacto
complainant's son to the S.S.Colony Police Station. However, no first
information report was registered regarding the same. Further, the
defacto complainant was compelled to sign a statement and receive the
body without conducting any postmortem. Therefore, the accused, being
police personnel have misused their authority and engaged in the
planned destruction of evidence. Only after the intervention of this
Court, the body was exhumed and post-mortem was conducted.
(iii)The accused have paid Rs.7 lakh to the family of the
deceased to avoid legal disputes. However, when the defacto
complainant pursued legal action, an amount of Rs.5 lakh was taken
back and this was evidenced by a receipt (Ex.P8). Therefore, it is clear
that the accused have attempted to suppress the issue by paying off the
family of the deceased.
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9.In addition, according to him, the medical evidence shows
that the deceased was treated for Rhabdomyolysis and Acute Renal
Failure, which can be caused due to severe torture and beatings. He has
placed certain materials and medical literature in support of the same
before this Court. Hence, he prayed for dismissal of these petitions.
10.Heard the submissions made by the learned Counsel
appearing for the respective parties.
11.The defacto complainant's son, one Muthu Karthick, aged 17,
died in the Government Rajaji Hospital on 24.01.2019. Prior to that, he
was a suspect in a theft case registered as Crime No.9 of 2019 on
04.01.2019 which was being investigated by the Accused police officers.
He was taken into custody by the Accused police officers on 13.01.2019.
However, he was sent to the Juvenile Justice Board on 16.01.2019 for
being remanded to judicial custody in connection with another FIR in
Crime No.24 of 2019 on the allegation that he has threatened and
extorted Rs.300/- from one Muthukumar at knife point. The S.S.Colony
Police before producing the deceased to the Juvenile Justice Board have
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produced him for pre-remand medical examination to the Government
Rajaji Hospital, Madurai. The Doctor, after examining the deceased, has
issued a certificate that there was no injury on the deceased. Thereafter,
he was produced before the Juvenile Justice Board around 07.55 pm on
16.01.2019. The Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board has examined
the deceased through her Assistant, one Karthick as to whether he
suffered any injury and recorded that he was not having any injury. He
was released on bail by the Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board at
around 08.00 pm on the same day.
12.Barely two hours after the deceased was released on bail, he
was admitted in a private hospital complaining of illness and vomiting.
Thereafter, the deceased was referred to the Government Rajaji Hospital,
Madurai. As per the referral letter, the deceased was admitted
complaining of assault by police officers and was being referred for
emergency Hemodialysis. The Government Doctor (PW56) has admitted
the deceased in the Government Hospital on 18.01.2019 and recorded in
the Accident Register (Ex.P35) that he was assaulted by four known
persons using sticks, hands and legs.
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13.In the meantime, PW1, the mother of the deceased, appeared
before the Juvenile Justice Board on 18.01.2019 at 02.00 pm and informed
the Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board that her son was subjected
to custodial torture and that her son is in a serious condition. The
Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board (PW74) has stated during her
examination that she was also showed a video of the injuries on the body
of the deceased by one of the relatives of the deceased. The Chairperson
suggested the mother of the deceased to put the same in writing and a
complaint was preferred with the assistance of a Counsel in the Board.
Based on the same, the Chairperson directed the Probation Officer, one
Clement (PW46) to ascertain whether the deceased / juvenile has
suffered any injuries. The Chairperson also addressed a letter to the
Dean of the Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai, as to why the injuries
have not been noted in the pre-remand medical examination.
14.Pursuant to the directions of the Chairperson of the Juvenile
Justice Board, the Probation Officer has examined the deceased on
19.01.2019 and saw visible injuries all over the body of the deceased.
Further, he also examined the mother of the deceased and submitted a
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report [Ex.P15] on 22.01.2019 to the Board that the deceased had visible
injuries over several parts of his body.
15.In the meantime, the Juvenile, Muthu Karthick, died in the
Government Rajaji hospital, Madurai on 24.01.2019. The death
intimation was given by the Government Rajaji Hospital to the
S.S.Colony Police Station. However, the police did not register any first
information report regarding the death of the deceased and one Kannan,
Sub-Inspector of Police (PW80) has instead registered the same as CSR
No.53 of 2019 on 25.01.2019. The same was also not acted upon, based on
the letter of PW1 that she is withdrawing her complaint. It appears that
the parents have received the dead body, by giving a statement that it
was a natural death and the body was buried.
16.Thereafter, the mother of the deceased has approached this
Court by filing WP(MD).5143 of 2019 seeking transfer of investigation
and that the death of her son was caused due to custodial torture
inflicted by the Accused police officers. The body of the deceased was
exhumed on 08.03.2019, pursuant to the orders of this Court in WP(MD).
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5143 of 2019. This Court came down heavily as against the manner in
which the police dealt this case, transferred the investigation to CB-CID
and also monitored the investigation. The Doctors who conducted the
postmortem found that there 25 ante-mortem injuries on the body of the
deceased.
17.Thereafter, the CB-CID has filed the final report as against
the petitioners and the trial Court by its judgment dated 26.09.2025 has
found them guilty, convicted and sentenced them as stated supra.
Challenging the same, the petitioners have filed criminal appeals and
filed the instant petitions seeking suspension of sentence.
18.This Court paid its anxious considerations to the
submissions and also to the materials placed on record.
19.A 17 year old juvenile was done to death. His death was not
natural and the post-mortem conducted after exhumation revealed as
many as twenty five ante-mortem injuries on his body. The deceased
appears to have died due to custodial torture inflicted on him during
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police custody. But there is no direct evidence and the case revolves on
the following chain of circumstances which were projected and
appraised by the police and the trial Court as showing that the
petitioners had inflicted custodial torture on the deceased:
(1)The Accused No.1 [Inspector of Police], Accused
No.2 [Special Sub-Inspector of Police], Accused No.3 [Head
Constable] and Accused No.4 [Police Constable Grade-I],
attached to the Crime Branch of the S.S.Colony Police Station,
were investigating a theft case registered in Crime No.9 of 2019
on 04.01.2019. The Sub-Inspector of Police (PW61) who
registered the FIR in Crime No.9 of 2019 has stated that the
investigation into the case was being carried out by Accused
No.1.
(2)The Case Diary File of Crime No.9 of 2019 [marked
as Ex.P.174] also shows the investigation into this case was
being carried out by the Accused. As per the daily remarks on
07.01.2019, the deceased along with ten others were called for
enquiry regarding the theft to the S.S.Colony Police Station and
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the deceased was heavily suspected as being involved in the
theft. Therefore, Accused No.1 has sent a requisition for the
Call Data Records of the deceased and also taken one Sri @
Narendran / PW37, a friend of the deceased into custody.
(3)Further, one of the relatives of the deceased (PW3)
has stated that four policemen were enquiring into the above
theft case on 03.01.2019 and that they conducted a search in the
house of the deceased on 13.01.2019.
(4)The Accused police personnel have arrested the
deceased from Pandalkudi and the same was elicited through
the testimony of PW37 that the police have taken him to
Pandalkudi to search for the deceased and have made him to
call the deceased on his mobile phone. Further, as per Ex.P.174
[Case Diary File in Crime No.9 of 2019], they have taken PW37
to Pandalkudi on the evening of 13.01.2019 in a Tata Sumo Car
to search for the deceased at his place of work.
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(5)As per the Call Data Records of the deceased
[marked as Ex.P103], PW37 called the deceased on the evening
of 13.01.2019, when the accused officials and PW37 were in
Pandalkudi and at that time, the tower location of the deceased
is shown as Arupukottai. Thereafter, the deceased has called
his mother on 15.01.2019 and 16.01.2019 and his tower location
is shown as Madurai-16 which is within the jurisdiction of the
S.S.Colony PS. The Call Data Records of the Accused confirms
that they were also in Madurai during the relevant period.
(6)The deceased had been taken into police custody in
connection with Crime No.9 of 2019 on 13.01.2019 and was in
illegal custody of the Accused. He was ultimately remanded in
connection with another case in Crime No.24 of 2019 on
16.01.2019 as if he has extorted a sum of Rs.300/- from one
Muthukumar. The Sub-Inspector of Police who registered the
case has stated that the case was registered on the instructions
of Accused No.1 and that he remanded the deceased as per the
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instructions of Accused No.1. Curiously, the Sub-Inspector of
Police (PW61), who has remanded the deceased, has been
shown as a witness.
(7)The S.S.Colony Police before producing the
deceased to the Juvenile Justice Board have produced him
before one Dr.Ramanan (PW57), the Chief Medical Officer at
the Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai, for pre-remand
medical examination at 06.30 pm. This Doctor, after examining
the deceased, has issued a certificate that there was no injury on
the deceased and the same was marked as Ex.P38. Thereafter,
he was produced before the Juvenile Justice Board around 07.55
pm on 16.01.2019. The Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board
has examined the deceased through her Assistant, one Karthick
as to whether he suffered any injury. The Assistant has
recorded that he was not having any injury. He was released on
bail by the Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice Board at around
08.00 pm on the same day.
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(8)After being released, the deceased has informed his
mother (PW1), his father (PW2) and other relatives that PW37
called him to Pandalkudi, that he was abducted by the Accused
and that they have kept him in illegal custody and inflicted
custodial torture on him. The deceased has also specifically
named the accused police officers in his statements to his
mother. These statements were admitted as oral dying
declaration under Section 32(1) of the Indian Evidence Act by
the trial Court. The mother and father of the deceased had also
noticed the injuries on his body.
(9)Within two hours after the deceased was released
on bail, he was admitted in a private hospital complaining of
illness and vomiting. The deceased was admitted at the private
hospital of one Dr.Vijayaraj (PW51) and they have treated the
deceased from 16.01.2019 to 18.01.2019. Thereafter, the
deceased was referred to the Government Rajaji Hospital,
Madurai. As per the referral letter, the deceased was admitted
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complaining of assault by police officers and was being referred
for emergency Hemodialysis.
(10)The Government Doctor (PW56) has admitted the
deceased in the Government Hospital on 18.01.2019 and
recorded in the Accident Register (Ex.P35) that he was
assaulted by four known persons using sticks, hands and legs.
Since he was reported with kidney failure, he was referred to
one Dr.Jegan, Nephrologist (PW55) for further treatment. This
Doctor has noted that both the legs of the deceased were
swollen and provided further treatment.
(11)In the meantime, PW1, the mother of the deceased,
appeared before the Juvenile Justice Board on 18.01.2019 at
02.00 pm and informed the Chairperson of the Juvenile Justice
Board that her son was subjected to custodial torture and that
her son is in a serious condition. The Chairperson (PW74) was
also shown a video of the injuries on the body of the deceased
by one of the relatives of the deceased. Thereafter, the
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Chairperson directed the Probation Officer, one Clement
(PW46) to ascertain whether the deceased / juvenile has
suffered any injuries and also addressed a letter to the Dean of
the Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai, as to why the injuries
have not been noted in the pre-remand medical examination.
(12)The Probation Officer has examined the deceased
on 19.01.2019 and saw visible injuries all over the body of the
deceased. Further, he also examined the mother of the deceased
and submitted a report [Ex.P15] on 22.01.2019 to the Board that
the deceased had visible injuries over several parts of his body.
(13)The deceased was admitted in the hospital with
injuries on 18.01.2019 that he was assaulted by four known
persons. The same was intimated by the Government Hospital
to the Police Outpost at the Government Rajaji Hospital.
However, no enquiry was conducted on the same and no
statement was obtained from the deceased. In the meantime,
the Juvenile, Muthu Karthick, died in the hospital on
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24.01.2019. The death intimation was given by the Government
Rajaji Hospital to the S.S.Colony Police Station. However, the
police did not register any first information report regarding
the death of the deceased and one Kannan, Sub-Inspector of
Police (PW80) has instead registered the same as CSR No.53 of
2019 on 25.01.2019. The same was also not acted upon, based on
the letter of PW1 that she is withdrawing her complaint.
(14)Thereafter, the parents have received the body of
the deceased, by giving a statement that it was a natural death
and the body was buried. However, the post-mortem of the
deceased which was carried out on 08.03.2019 found that there
were 25 ante-mortem injuries on the body of the deceased.
(15)The accused have paid Rs.7 lakh to the family of
the deceased to avoid legal disputes. However, when the
defacto complainant pursued legal action, an amount of Rs.5
lakh was taken back and this was evidenced by a receipt
(Ex.P8) which was signed by PW3, a relative of the deceased.
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20.This Court is of the opinion that the sequence of events
commencing from the registration of the FIR in the theft case in Crime
No.9 of 2019 on 04.01.2019 and culminating in the death of the juvenile
on 24.01.2019 constitutes an unbroken chain of circumstances, which,
prima facie , supports the findings recorded by the trial Court that the
accused have inflicted custodial torture on the deceased and caused his
death. Though there is no direct eyewitness to the custodial assault, the
prosecution case rests upon a series of circumstances which have been
accepted by the trial Court after appreciation of both oral and
documentary evidence.
21.This Court is of the considered view that there are no
grounds to hold that the findings recorded by the trial Court are so
infirm as to warrant suspension of the sentence pending disposal of the
appeal. Having regard to the gravity of the offence, the nature of the
evidence available on record, the unbroken chain of circumstances, and
the findings recorded by the trial Court, this Court is not satisfied that
the petitioners have made out a case for suspension of sentence pending
disposal of the appeal. Accordingly, these petitions stand dismissed.
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22.Before parting with the matter, this Court considers it
necessary to advert to certain disturbing features that emerge from the
evidence on record. These aspects are not referred to for deciding the
prayer for suspension of sentence, which has already been rejected on its
own merits. However, they disclose serious systemic and institutional
lapses which cannot escape judicial notice, particularly when the victim
was a child.
23.The materials placed before this Court reveal serious
deficiencies in the manner in which the medical system responded to the
incident. The deceased was subjected to a pre-remand medical
examination hardly a few hours before he required emergency
hospitalisation. Such examination is a vital safeguard to ensure that any
pre-existing injuries or allegations of ill-treatment is detected, recorded,
and acted upon before the juvenile is committed to institutional custody.
Yet, the Government Doctor who conducted the medical examination
has certified that there were no injuries whatsoever on his body. Within
a short span thereafter, he was admitted in a private hospital and
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subsequently referred to the Government Rajaji Hospital with
allegations of assault by police officers and acute renal failure requiring
emergency haemodialysis. The discrepancy between the pre-remand
medical certificate and the subsequent medical records is striking. It is
also disturbing that the body came to be released by the Government
Hospital without even conducting a post-mortem, despite the
circumstances surrounding the death of a juvenile who had been in
police custody before his hospitalisation and was allegedly assaulted by
police officers.
24.It is also concerning that the safeguards contemplated under
the juvenile justice framework failed to operate effectively in this case.
The deceased was not an ordinary adult-accused but a child in conflict
with the law, in respect of whom every statutory authority concerned
was expected to exercise a heightened degree of care and vigilance. The
mother of the deceased has approached the Juvenile Justice Board
alleging custodial torture. Acting on the directions of the Board, the
Probation Officer visited the deceased on 19.01.2019, noticed visible
injuries all over his body and submitted a report on 22.01.2019. Despite
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these developments, no effective action appears to have been taken by
the Chairman of the Juvenile Justice Board. Even after the death of the
juvenile on 24.01.2019, the complaint of the mother was not registered as
a First Information Report, no meaningful enquiry was undertaken, the
body was released without conducting a post-mortem, and the
complaint itself was treated as withdrawn. It was only pursuant to the
intervention of this Court in WP(MD)No.5143 of 2019 that the body was
exhumed nearly two months later, when the post-mortem disclosed
twenty five ante-mortem injuries.
25.The available materials creates a disturbing impression that
every possible effort was made by the Police machinery to avoid
institutional accountability. The trial Court has noticed attempts to
destroy the medico-legal evidence in this case. Though only four police
personnel have been prosecuted and convicted, the evidence discloses
the involvement of several other officials whose conduct also calls for
scrutiny. Premchandran (PW61), who registered both Crime No.9 of
2019 and Crime No.24 of 2019 against the deceased, has merely been
examined as a prosecution witness. Though the prosecution alleges that
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these cases were foisted, no investigation appears to have been
undertaken into the circumstances under which they came to be
registered. The hospital had intimated both the injuries sustained by the
deceased and, subsequently, his death to the police. Yet, no statement
was recorded from the deceased, no enquiry was undertaken, and no
First Information Report was registered regarding the same. Instead, the
complaint of the mother was reduced to a mere CSR entry and later
closed on the strength of a statement said to have been obtained from her
withdrawing the complaint. Significantly, it was only after this Court
directed exhumation of the body on 08.03.2019 that the very same
complaint came to be registered as a First Information Report on the
very next day. Equally inexplicable is the conduct of PW80 who has
facilitated the release of the deceased's body without conducting any
post-mortem and has also provided a request letter to the Hospital on
26.01.2019 that the defacto complainant can be allowed to receive the
body of the deceased and the Hospital is not responsible for the same.
This letter has been marked as Ex.P40. Despite these circumstances, he
too has been examined only as a prosecution witness.
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26.Had the pre-remand medical examination been conducted
with the degree of care expected from a medical professional; had the
Juvenile Justice Board personally examined the child and acted promptly
upon the complaint of the mother and the report of the Probation
Officer; or had the police discharged their statutory obligations by
registering the information regarding the injuries and the subsequent
death in accordance with law, the course of events might have been
altogether different. The present case, therefore, reflects not merely
isolated lapses on the part of individual officers but a serious
institutional failure at multiple levels.
27.This Court is not recording any finding of criminal liability
against the officials referred to above, as that issue does not arise for
consideration in these proceedings. Nevertheless, the evidence brought
on record discloses prima facie dereliction of statutory duties on the part
of several functionaries. The gravest threat to the rule of law is not
merely dereliction from duty and abuse of power, but it is the belief that
such acts will have no consequences. It is for the respective institutional
heads concerned to examine the conduct of the officials concerned, fix
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responsibility in accordance with law and initiate such departmental or
other proceedings as may be warranted.
28.Custodial violence rarely results from the acts of a single
individual. More often than not, it is enabled by successive institutional
failures. Unless accountability is ensured at every level, the prosecution
of a few individuals alone will neither address the root cause nor
prevent the recurrence of such tragic incidents.
With the above observations, these petitions are dismissed.
Index : Yes / No 13.07.2026
NCC : Yes / No
gk
Note:
Mark a copy of this order to
1. The Chief Secretary to Government,
State of Tamil Nadu,
Secretariat, Chennai.
2. The Secretary to Government,
Home Department,
State of Tamil Nadu,
Secretariat, Chennai.
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3. The Secretary to Government,
Health and Family Welfare Department,
State of Tamil Nadu,
Secretariat, Chennai.
4. The Director General of Police [HoPF],
Chennai.
5. The Registrar General,
Madras High Court,
Chennai.
To
1.The Judge,
V Additional District and Sessions Court,
Madurai.
2.The Superintendent of Police,
CB CID,
Madurai Town,
Madurai.
3.The Additional Public Prosecutor,
Madurai Bench of Madras High Court,
Madurai.
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B.PUGALENDHI, J.,
gk
Crl.MP(MD) Nos.15233, 15877, 19074 of 2025; 1309 of 2026
in
Crl.A(MD) Nos.1133, 1164, 1305, 1231 of 2025
13.07.2026
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