In a rare case, a trial court in Madurai has awarded the death penalty to nine policemen found guilty of custodial torture and murder of a father and son in June 2019, during the pandemic period at Sattankulam in Thoothukudi district.
On April 6, the judge awarded the death sentence to the then Sattankulam Inspector S Sridhar, Sub Inspectors P Raghu Ganesh and K Balakrishnan, Head Constables S Murugan and A Saamidurai, and Constables M Muthuraj, S Chelladurai, X Thomas Francis and S Vailumuthu. A total fine of over one crore has been imposed on them.
The case pertains to the custodial torture and deaths of father and son, Jayaraj and Bennix died in custody in 2020 after alleged police torture in Sattankulam. The incident sparked outrage, leading to a CBI probe, which resulted in nine policemen being convicted and sentenced to death.
Madurai First Additional District and Sessions Judge G Muthukumaran, on March 23 2026, held that all nine policemen prosecuted by the CBI in the case were guilty of the crime.
The judge said, “The police personnel were mentally sound and well educated. They were drawing government salaries. Those who should protect and safeguard the public acted in such a manner. It was a case of the fence eating the crops.”
Court Sentences 9 Police Personnel to Death Penalty in Sathankulam Custodial Torture and Death Case pic.twitter.com/iP8sauEM3e
— Central Bureau of Investigation (India) (@CBIHeadquarters) April 7, 2026
The court observed, “It would send a false message to society. The punishment imposed on the police personnel in this case should be a stringent one in order to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in future. All the nine in the case were equally involved in the attack on the father-son duo which resulted in their death.”
The judge said, “If not for the HC, the truth regarding the incident would have been buried along with the mortal remains of the duo. It was an act of vengeance by the police. Jeyaraj was tortured since there was an altercation with the police, and Beniks was tortured since he questioned the illegal detention of his father. The act was committed by the policemen with the deliberate intent to instil fear among the public as two traders had lost their lives.”
The court said, “Where there is power, there should be responsibility. The incident was an attack on human rights. Custodial death is a social evil.” After signing the judgment on April 6, the judge broke the nib of his pen, a usual practice after pronouncing a death sentence.
Hailing the verdict, Jayaraj’s daughter J Persis told the media, “The justice we get today is justice for all common people. No family should face the trauma we underwent. We believe the judgment in this case will prevent such incidents of custodial deaths in future.”
The court relied on the statement of the sole eyewitness, Constable Revathy, in this case, who was present when the duo were tortured in the police station.
The case background:
Jayaraj Nadar (60) was running a timber shop, while his son Bennix Immanualvel Nadar (31) was selling and servicing mobile phones. On June 19, 2020, Jayaraj was in the mobile store, opening the shop beyond permitted hours in violation of lockdown rules. According to police, it was not the first instance, and he was asked to close the shop, during which an alleged verbal altercation took place.
Police took Jayaraj to the police station. His son Bennix went to the station questioning police action. They argued with the police and allegedly attacked them. Police booked them (case no. 312/2020) under Sections 188, 383, and 506 (II) of IPC and, after completing medical certification formalities, presented them before the local magistrate and lodged the duo in Kovilpatti sub-jail.
On June 20, they were taken for medical tests and later produced in court, where judicial custody was granted based on the medical report.
On June 22, the court postponed their bail. On the same day, Bennix was taken to the hospital in Kovilpatti and declared dead. The following day, on the morning of June 23, Jayaraj died.
On hearing this, their relatives and political and traders’ associations accused the police of their deaths. Their deaths, they alleged, were due to police beating in custody. The victims’ relatives refused to take the bodies after post-mortem and staged protests. On the evening of June 25, the bodies were handed over to them.
At that time, Thoothukudi District Police Superintendent Arun Balagopal told the media that Bennix had heart ailments and had a breathing problem in prison and was rushed to hospital, where he died. He said Bennix’s father was running a high temperature at the time of arrest and was admitted to the isolation ward.
DMK Chief M K Stalin said that TN Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy (who held the Home portfolio) should own responsibility for their deaths and that those behind these should be punished. DMK announced a compensation of Rs 25 lakhs to the victim’s family. TNCC president K S Alagiri sought a CBI probe in the matter.
Opposition parties said the Rs 20 lakhs announced by the state government was not enough and should be increased.
In 2021, DMK came to power and pursued the case. DMK, which was in opposition then, intensified the issue, alleging an anti-Christian attitude of the Edappadi K Palaniswamy-led government, which had given a job to the victim’s family along with cash compensation.
On June 30, 2025 the Madras High Court commented that there was enough prima facie evidence to make out a case of murder against the ten policemen. The HC transferred the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). During the trial, one of the suspects, SSI Paulduyrai, died of COVID-19. The case was posted before the First Additional District and Sessions Court in Madurai.
