TN Custodial Deaths: Father And Son Beaten For 7 Hours, Made To Clean Own Blood, Says CBI

A Tamil Nadu man and his son who died after their arrest for allegedly violating the coronavirus lockdown in June were tortured for over seven hours by policemen who "wanted to teach them a lesson," the CBI has said in a chargesheet on the custodial deaths that angered the nation.

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What CBI chargesheet says

The chargesheet also stated that Jayaraj, 59, and his son Bennix, 31, were beaten so badly that blood was splattered on the walls. They were made to clean the blood with their clothes. The CBI added that the two were made to suffer ¡°several rounds of brutal torture with intervals in between 7.45 pm and 3 am¡±.

The CBI submitted a report titled ¡°Results of Laboratory Analysis¡± to the Madras High Court, according to India Today. It said that the DNA samples collected from the Sathankulam police station matched those of the father and son.

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¡°That deceased Benniks and Jeyaraj were subjected to brutal torture by the accused police officials on the evening of 19.06.2020 and intervening night of 19-20.06.2020 in the Police Station Sathankulam, stands established,¡± the CBI said, citing experts from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory in Delhi.

Benniks was even forced by the policemen to clean the blood on the floor of the police station using his vest.

Their clothes were removed, they were made to bend over a table in their underwear and their hands and feet were held as they were beaten.

"While holding them in that position they were subjected to severe beatings with lathi on buttocks, back and other parts of the body though Jeyaraj begged that given his high blood pressure and diabetic condition he would not be able to sustain such grievous injuries still no one paid any heed and accused police officials continued with several rounds of brutal torture," the CBI chargesheet says.

The CBI says the police filed a false FIR against Benniks and Jeyaraj to cover up the crime. Investigations reveal that the two didn't violate lockdown guidelines. Bloodstained clothes of the two men were changed twice the next day, when they were taken to court. The clothes were not handed over to their family but were dumped in the trash at a government hospital, the CBI says in its chargesheet.

The CBI also said that the torture endured by the father and son ¡°was sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause their death¡±. The post mortem examination report said that they died of blunt injuries. The injuries included serious, big wounds "with peeled skin".

What Madras High Court has said

The Madras High Court had observed in July that there was ample evidence to charge the policemen involved in the custodial deaths with murder. The court had said that the postmortem examination reports of the two men showed that they had suffered grievous injuries.

The custodial deaths had triggered massive public outrage. The state government had transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation after approval from the Madras High Court on June 29.

Why the duo was arrested

Jeyaraj and Benniks were arrested on June 19 for allegedly keeping their mobile phone shop in Thoothukudi open 15 minutes beyond curfew. After Jeyaraj was taken away by the police, his son, who reached the police station, was also arrested.

They were later sent to the Kovilpatti sub-jail. On June 22, Bennix complained of breathing problems and was admitted to a local government-run hospital. He later died at the facility. His father died the next day.