New sexual harassment complaint against ‘Gem Granites’ Veeramani

Gem Granites founder R. Veeramani walked out of a special POCSO court in Chennai. File. | Photo credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam

In a new development in the ongoing investigation against granite baron R Veeramani, who is facing charges of sexually harassing minors, another girl has come forward with a complaint of molestation, police said on Sunday.

The action was initiated based on the statement of a minor who was earlier a witness in an already registered case, they said.

The case dates back to October 2025, when a child rights activist handed the Anti-Vice Squad a disc with a video of a minor being sexually assaulted. A note accompanying the ride stated that the man in the footage was Veeramani and that the incident took place at Mahendra Simhan and Shanthi’s residence.

Although the police initially tried to file a closure report citing the inability to identify the victim, a special POCSO court judge rejected the move in February 2026 and ordered further investigation.

Following court intervention, police recovered the original video during searches and subsequently arrested Mr. Veeramani, Ms. Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan in August 2026.

A Special Investigation Team was later constituted to investigate the allegations.

The police are now registering a total of eight cases of sexual harassment of minors. Mr. Veeramani was arrested in all the eight cases.

The other accused include Ms. Shanthi, arrested in three cases, Lazar in five cases, Mahendra Simhan in two cases and Ganesan in two cases. Srinivasan, Sakthivel, Babu and Parthiban were arrested in one case each.

All the accused are currently lodged in Puzhal Central Jail, Chennai.

During the ongoing investigation, the accused driver Mr. Lazar was taken to a one-day police cell for questioning. Based on this investigation, authorities identified the white car used in the crime and initiated follow-up.

Meanwhile, the POCSO trial judge directed the Tamil Nadu government to provide a relief fund of ₹2,000 to one of the victims.

Of the eight registered cases, the police are to submit final reports in two cases next week.

Published – 08 Nov 2026 17:11 IST