Jayaraj-Bennicks Custodial Deaths Case : Supreme Court Dismisses Plea Of Accused Cop To Transfer Trial From Tamil Nadu To Kerala

The Supreme Court today dismissed a transfer petition filed by P. Raghu Ganesh one of the accused in the custodial death case of trader P. Jayraj and his son J. Benicks. Ganesh, who was the Sub-Inspector of the Sathankulam police station where the custodial death of the father-son duo happened in June 202, sought the transfer of the trial from Tamil Nadu to Kerala.Senior Advocate Balasubramaniam, appearing for Ganesh, submitted before a bench comprising Justices Krishna Murari and S Ravindra Bhat that the accused was not present at the place of incident when the crime took place. He also alleged that there was "hostile attitude" by the State Government against him.The bench however rejected the transfer plea noting that the matter was being monitored by the Madras High Court. Also, 44 witnesses have already been examined in the trial. Hence, the bench was of the view that the transfer request cannot be granted.P. Jayaraj and his son J. Bennicks were arrested by Tamil Nadu Police in Sathankulam for allegedly violating the CoVID-19 lockdown rules imposed by the Government of India. It has been alleged that they had kept their mobile phone shop running beyond permissible hours. It has been alleged that they were tortured in the police custody which led to their death.The custodial deaths sparked of large scale public protests and social media outrage across the country. The Madras High Court took suo moto cognizance of the matter and ordered the Superintendent of Police, Thoothukudi, to inquire into the incident and submit a status report. An order was given to videograph the autopsy, which the court ordered to be done by a panel of three experts in the presence of a magistrate after the police completed its inquest proceedings.The Tamil Nadu government handed over the investigation to the CBI. The CBI has filed charge sheet in the case.Case Title: P. Raghu vs Central Bureau of Investigation and Ors |T.P.(Crl.) No. 37/2021Click Here To Read/Download Order

Jayaraj-Bennicks Custodial Deaths Case : Supreme Court Dismisses Plea Of Accused Cop To Transfer Trial From Tamil Nadu To Kerala

Deepankar Malviya

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