Madras HC questions police on temple guard Ajit Kumar’s alleged torture and death in custody. Court demands answers, citing rising custodial deaths in the state.
Chennai: Today, on June 30, in a deeply troubling case, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court is looking into the alleged custodial death of 27-year-old Ajit Kumar, a temple security guard from Thirupuvanam in Sivagangai district, Tamil Nadu.
Ajit died after being taken into police custody, and the court has taken up the matter on its own (suo motu). During the hearing on Monday, the bench of Justices SM Subramaniam and CV Karthikeyan asked strong and serious questions to the authorities.
The judges wanted to know why Ajit Kumar was picked up by the police at all.
“Was he a terrorist?”
the judges questioned, asking if such harsh treatment was necessary in a case like this. They also raised concerns about why Ajit was allegedly beaten when he had no weapons on him.
The case has come under the court’s focus after the AIADMK’s legal wing filed a petition, pointing out that there have been 24 custodial deaths in Tamil Nadu over the last four years. Responding to this, the court has asked the government for full details on all such deaths.
The government lawyer has asked for more time to give the information, so the next hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday.
Sivagangai District Superintendent of Police, Ashish Rawat, has already begun an investigation. Six policemen have been suspended — their names are Ramachandran, Prabhu, Kannan, Sankara Manikandan, Raja, and Anand.
The incident happened in Thirupuvanam. Ajit Kumar, who worked as a guard at the Madapuram Kaliamman temple, was first taken in for questioning after a theft complaint.
A 42-year-old woman had said that around 80 grams of gold jewellery went missing from her car. She told police that she had asked Ajit to park her vehicle when she came to the temple, but he didn’t know how to drive, so he got someone else to help him.
Ajit was let go after questioning but later, he was allegedly taken back into custody. Not long after that, the police informed his family that he had died. His family believes that Ajit died because of torture by the police.
His brother Naveen shared shocking details.
Also Read: Drug-Planting 1996 || Ex-IPS Officer Sanjiv Bhatt Convicted in 28-Year-Old Case
He said,
“Five people, including me, were taken and we were on rounds and beaten. She had asked him to park her vehicle because she was handicapped, but he didn’t know how to drive. So he asked someone else. Later, police said the jewellery was missing. They hit him badly.”
Naveen also added,
“They even hit me for half an hour before him to persuade him to confess. I was made to kneel… My brother had no criminal background. He was gagged and beaten.”
The post-mortem of Ajit Kumar was completed, and the body was handed over to his parents on Monday.
AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami has demanded a judicial inquiry, full compensation for Ajit’s family, and strict punishment for the guilty police officers.
He also hit out at Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, saying,
“If someone is found guilty, the person should be arrested and produced in front of the court, not subjected to police brutality. I condemn the puppet CM who is in charge of the Police Department but unable to govern it.”
BJP’s Tamil Nadu President Nainar Nagendran also raised alarm over the case.
He said,
“With relatives claiming that seven policemen beat Ajit Kumar for two days in the name of enquiry, it raises serious suspicions of a lock-up death,”
Also Read: SC imposes Rs 3 lakh fine on ex-IPS officer for filing repeated pleas
He added,
“Just last week, three women — including a pregnant woman — who tried to file a sexual assault complaint were attacked by a policeman. Now Ajit’s brother says they were bound and beaten inside a moving vehicle. This shows the growing pattern of police brutality,”
while demanding a proper and speedy investigation by the state government.
Case Title:
Suo Motu W.P. (MD) No. 11972 of 2025 – In re: Alleged Custodial Death of Ajit Kumar
Click Here to Read Our Reports on Custodial Death
FOLLOW US ON YOUTUBE FOR MORE LEGAL UPDATES
