Madras HC slams police for inaction, saying FIR alone isn’t enough. Judge orders suspension and disciplinary action for eight years of negligence.
Chennai: On July 15, the Madras High Court has come down strongly on the Tamil Nadu police for their careless handling of a serious theft case. The Court directed the Director General of Police (DGP) to immediately suspend a senior officer and take departmental action against other police personnel who failed to properly investigate a complaint about the theft of 92 sovereigns of gold jewellery.
The case began when a woman named Jirina Begam, who lives in Choolaimedu, Chennai, filed a petition in the Madras High Court.
In her petition, she said that 92 sovereigns of gold jewellery, which she had kept for her daughter’s marriage, were stolen from her house on the night of September 4, 2018. This tragic theft happened soon after her husband passed away.
The next day, Jirina filed a complaint at the Choolaimedu Police Station, but no real action was taken by the police to find the stolen gold or arrest the thieves.
She didn’t give up and made multiple representations to the Commissioner of Police in 2019 and again in 2021, but nothing happened.
Since the police had not done anything for more than eight years, Jirina approached the Madras High Court asking for the case to be handed over to the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CBCID).
Her lawyer, Advocate S. Mohamed Safeeth, told the court that although a First Information Report (FIR) was registered, the police had done nothing serious to investigate the case or recover the jewellery.
Justice Velmurugan, who heard the case, was very unhappy with how the police handled the situation. He said that police officials must be trained well so that they can handle criminal cases properly.
“Police officials must be properly trained to handle criminal cases.”
He added that poor training and no sense of responsibility often result in negligence by the police.
“A lack of accountability and inadequate training often lead to dereliction of duty.”
The judge also pointed out that the police officer who was in charge at the time of the theft, Inspector Karnan, had remained in that post for too long. He is currently working as the Assistant Commissioner of Police in the Chennai Central Railway Division.
Justice Velmurugan said this was not normal and ordered his suspension. He also told the DGP to take departmental action against all police officers who had worked at the Choolaimedu Police Station from September 2018 till now.
“He ordered his immediate suspension and directed the DGP to take departmental action against all officers who had served at the station from September 2018 to date.”
This is not the only case where the court found fault with the police. In a different matter, the court looked into a land scam case in the Veeranam area of Salem district.
In this case, people had been promised residential plots under an instalment payment scheme, but they were cheated. The residents had gone to the local police to complain, but again, the police didn’t take any action.
Justice Velmurugan also looked into this issue and asked all police officers who worked at the Veeranam Police Station since 2018 to appear before the court.
After reviewing the case, the judge directed the DGP to begin disciplinary action against the officers who failed to register proper cases or act on the complaints.
The judge made it clear that just registering an FIR is not enough. Police must take strong and clear steps to investigate and protect justice.
“The court emphasised that mere registration of an FIR is not enough and that police must act decisively to uphold justice.”
Through his firm observations and strong actions, Justice Velmurugan has sent a clear message: the judiciary will not tolerate police inaction in serious criminal cases.
His order reflects growing concern from the courts about police failing to do their duty in protecting the rights of citizens.
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