Tuticorin: The Crime Branch of Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) on Thursday arrested four more police officials - Sub Inspector Balakrishnan, Inspector Sridhar and constables Muthuraj and Murugan in connection with the alleged custodial deaths of a father-son duo at a police station in Tamil Nadu.
Inspector Sridhar has been booked under Section 302 of IPC. The residents of Sathankulam celebrated after Sub Inspector Ragu Ganesh was arrested yesterday.
Earlier on Wednesday, murder charges were slapped on six people, including two sub-inspectors, and arrested Sub Inspector Ragu Ganesh, who was in suspension.
Within hours of taking over the probe on the directions of the Madras High Court, the specialised investigating agency altered the FIRs to include murder charges against SIs Raghu Ganesh and Balakrishnan, as many constables and members of Friends of Police (volunteers) of the Sathankulam police station, CB-CID sources said.
It arrested Raghu Ganesh late on Wednesday night shortly after state Law Minister C Ve Shanmugam assured that the government would ensure "highest punishment" to those responsible for the deaths of P Jeyaraj and his son Beniks, who were allegedly thrashed at the police station recently.
The murder charges capped dramatic developments both in the court and outside where a woman head constable witness to the happenings told a Magisterial probe that the two traders were thrashed an entire night by the other police personnel at Sathankulam station where they were detained over alleged lockdown violations late last month.
The death of the duo on June 23, which saw an outpouring of anger with people from various walks of life condemning the "police brutality", also drew the attention of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) as it issued notices to the state police chief and Tuticorin Superintendent of Police, seeking a detailed report.
Also Read: Father-Son duo thrashed all night by Sathankulam police personnel, says woman cop
Jeyaraj and Fenix, arrested for "violating" lockdown norms over the business hours of their cell phone shop, died at a hospital in Kovilpatti on June 23 while in judicial custody with the relatives alleging they were tortured at the Sathankulam police station by the personnel days earlier.
The probe into the case has since been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by the state government, though the court ordered the CB-CID to take over it till the central agency handled it, fearing evidence may disappear.
Top Tamil film star Rajinikanth described the deaths as "brutal killing," and slammed the alleged inappropriate behaviour of some policemen with a Judicial Magistrate at the Sathankulam police station when he conducted an enquiry.
Incidentally, the Sathankulam police station is now under the Revenue Department control, seen as an "unprecedented" development so far in the country, after the high court issued an order after the conduct of the local police personnel came under intense scrutiny.
Legal experts differed on the reasons with one opining that the court could have given such a direction apprehending possible destruction of evidence by the police.
Another view was that the Revenue Department is the authorised organ of the government to take possession of buildings, as warranted in specific cases such as this. An advocate, who did not want to be named, said the move could have been prompted by the fact that the department also enjoys some Executive powers such as issuing summons.
In her statement to the Judicial Magistrate earlier, Head Constable Revathy said the personnel at the Sathankulam police station thrashed Jeyaraj and his son the whole night there and lathis used for allegedly assaulting them and a table carried bloodstains.
