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Nearly six years after the custodial torture death of businessman P. Jayaraj and his son J. Benicks in Sattankulam, the First Additional District and Sessions Court in Madurai will deliver its verdict in the case on March 23, 2026 (Monday).
The gruesome crime took place in June 2020 in Sattankulam, Thoothukudi district, Tamil Nadu, during the nationwide lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic. It shocked civil society and sparked widespread protests.
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court took suo motu cognizance of the crime by the police and issued a series of directions. The then AIADMK government handed over the investigation of the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). A total of 10 police officers were charged in the case. One of them died after contracting COVID-19. CBI prosecuted nine policemen.
What happened on the day of the incident?
On 19 June 2020, Jayaraj, who was at his son Benicks’ sales and service showroom, was detained by the police for allegedly violating the COVID-19 lockdown rules.
It is said that on the night of June 18, 2020, while a couple of workers were waiting for their wages at a nearby shop, the police verbally assaulted them and told them to leave. Jayaraj heard the verbal abuse from the workers and asked them to stay for a few more minutes. The police chief constable passed this information on to his colleagues.
The next day in the evening, the police picked up Jayaraj from the shop. Seeing this, Benicks rushed to the Sattankulam police station and appealed to the police to release his father. Jayaraj was verbally and physically abused by the police at the station. Benicks intervened. Later, both were tortured at the police station by police personnel throughout the night. They suffered serious injuries.
They were detained at the police station. Family members were told the father and son would be released the next morning. The family was asked to bring new sets of clothes.
However, on 20 June 2020, the traders were taken to Sattankulam Government Hospital for a medical test. Their blood-soaked clothes were replaced. They were subsequently produced before the Sattankulam Judicial Magistrate and remanded in judicial custody. They were accommodated in the Kovilpatti pod.
The father and son were taken to Kovilpatti Government Hospital after they developed medical complications.
On June 22, 2020, Benicks bleeding became uncontrollable due to the bleeding and he fell unconscious. He died in hospital. On 23 June 2020, Jayaraj complained of chest pain. He too died in hospital. The death of the traders sparked massive protests.
Human rights organizations and activists have condemned police brutality. They also condemned the way the judge detained the traders and criticized the doctors.
Directions from Madurai Bench of Madras HC
On 24 June 2020, Division Judges PN Prakash (retired) and B. Pugalendhi of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court initiated suo motu proceedings in connection with the torture and custodial death case. The court said it would monitor the case and urged the public to remain calm. The court ordered a judicial inquiry.
Even though the High Court initiated the suo motu proceedings, the then government handed over the investigation into the case to the CBI. Expressing lack of confidence in the local police, the court directed the CB-CID to take over the investigation of the case till the CBI formally takes over.
Judicial Magistrate Kovilpatti said in the High Court report that the Sattankulam police did not cooperate in the investigation and tried to create an atmosphere of intimidation. The report said that from the moment the judicial magistrate entered the Sattankulam police station, the policemen did not acknowledge the presence of the magistrate and showed an indifferent attitude.
The report said the documents were delivered to the Magistrate’s Court late and when the CCTV footage was reviewed, it emerged that it had been calibrated in such a way that each day would be overwritten by the next day.
No footage was available from the day of the incident, although there was sufficient storage space in the CCTV system, the report said. However, a police constable revealed that the traders were tortured throughout the night.
Taking a serious view of the issue, the Supreme Court directed the Thoothukudi Collector to depute revenue officials to take control of the police station and secure the relevant materials. A forensic team has also been directed to collect evidence so that it can be safeguarded and handed over to the CBI.
The High Court initiated contempt proceedings against three police personnel – Additional Superintendent of Police D Kumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police C Prathapan and Constable Maharajan – for not cooperating with the Kovilpat Magistrate during the investigation. Contempt proceedings were later dropped after the officers apologized unconditionally.
During the hearing, the judges also spoke to Senior Constable S. Revathy, who spilled the beans on torture in custody. The court ensured that she was afforded adequate protection.
The court took into account the statement of the head constable, the medical report and the report of the magistrate and found prima facie material to impeach the police personnel involved in the custodial deaths for murder.
Taking a serious view of the case, the High Court also inquired about police welfare schemes.
It is only through such programs that violent tendencies in individuals could be curbed, the court said while directing the state government to allocate necessary funds for continuation of such programmes. The court added that a few bad apples should not be grounds for condemning the entire force.
The Supreme Court has recommended that the state government explore the possibility of replicating the ‘Magizhchi’ programme, started by the Chennai City Police, in other districts of Tamil Nadu.
What did the CBI charge sheet reveal?
The Central Bureau of Investigation filed the charge sheet on 25 September 2020 and the supplementary charge sheet on 12 August 2022 in the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court, Madurai.
The CBI filed a charge sheet against the then Inspector S. Sridhar; Sub-Inspectors P. Raghu Ganesh and K. Balakrishnan; Senior Constables S. Murugan and A. Saamidurai; and Constables M. Muthuraj, S. Chelladurai, X. Thomas Francis and S. Veilumuthu. Special Sub-Inspector Pauldurai, an accused in the case, died after contracting COVID-19.
In its charge sheet, the CBI said that Jayaraj and Benicks were subjected to brutal torture by police officers who knew that it was enough to cause their death.
During the investigation, it came to light that the traders did not violate the rules of the COVID-19 lockdown under which they were detained.
The CBI said investigations revealed that Jayaraj was picked up from his shop near the Kamaraj statue at 7:30 pm on 19 June 2020 and lodged at the Sattankulam police station based on a criminal conspiracy hatched by the accused.
After receiving the information, Benicks rushed to the station to inquire about his father’s arrest. He argued that his father was beaten. After an argument, both of them were wrongfully locked up in a police station and beaten up to teach them a lesson on how to behave like a police officer. The torture continued for several hours throughout the night.
Jayaraj and Benicks were forced to clean the blood from their wounds. The next morning, a sanitation worker at the Sattankulam police station was forced to clean up the blood on the floor to destroy the evidence. Cops have registered a false charge against the two, the CBI said.
Despite severe injuries, a certificate of “fitness for detention” was obtained. The blood-stained clothes were dumped in the dustbin of the Sattankulam Government Hospital.
Jayaraj and Benicks were limping and unable to sit properly when they were brought before the doctor. They were subsequently produced before the Magistrate’s Court to be remanded in custody.
Both developed health complications in Kovilpatti Jail and later succumbed to their injuries at the Kovilpatti Government Hospital.
In the additional charge sheet, the CBI submitted a report regarding the examination of the video footage available in the case.
Why were multiple extensions granted to complete the trial period?
Disposing of a petition filed by J. Selvarani, wife of Jayaraj and mother of Benicks, the Supreme Court in March 2021 directed the trial court to complete the trial within six months, noting that “justice delayed is justice denied” and “justice hurried is justice buried”.
However, on several occasions, the High Court granted the trial court additional time to complete the process.
In 2023, the High Court granted additional time taking into account that the chairperson’s post was vacant and the case was being heard by the Additional District Judge for CBI cases at Madurai as an additional charge.
In June 2025, during the hearing of the bail application filed by the main accused, the High Court was informed that the accused attended the trial in person and cross-examined the witnesses at length during several hearings.
The Magistrate was cross-examined in 26 hearings from 16 October 2023 to 2 February 2024 and the Investigating Officer was cross-examined in 21 hearings from 27 March 2024 to 26 September 2024. The High Court was told that the trial was prevented and the intention was to delay the trial.
Several bail petitions filed by the accused were dismissed by the High Court. The accused are lodged in Madurai Central Jail.
The main accused, Sridhar, also filed an application in the trial court to become an approver. The plea was dismissed. Selvarani objected to the request, saying it was intended to delay the trial.
The CBI also opposed the plea saying that Sridhar was the main conspirator and main accused. Jayaraj and Benicks were allegedly tortured on his orders when he was Station House Officer at Sattankulam Police Station.
What did the trial court say?
The Madurai First Additional District and Sessions Court will deliver the verdict in the 2020 custodial death case at Sattankulam on March 23, 2026. Justice G. Muthukumaran posted the matter for consideration.
