Tuticorin custodial torture: Rajinikanth condoles deaths of father-son duo

Expressing distress over the Tuticorin custodial deaths, Superstar Rajnikanth on Sunday extended his deepest condolence to the kin of thre deceased. This comes after P Jayaraj (59) and his son Bennix (31) (also being spelt as Fenix and Bennicks) allegedly died of brutality and alleged sexual assault in police custody at the Sathankulam police station.

As per sources, Rajnikanth also spoke to Jayaraj's wife over the phone to extended his condolences to the family

Earlier, Kamal Haasan, and other stars of the South film industry expressed their anger at the incident. Kamal Haasan has expressed disgust over the Tuticorin custodial deaths and has urged the government to probe further and deliver justice to the perpetrators of the crime. He stated that the incident that has taken place in Santhukulam 'can happen to any one of us' and further termed it as unjust and 'complete violation of human rights'. He interpellated Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K. Palaniswami and urged that monetary relief for the victims' families is not enough and that stern action must be taken in this brutal incident. 

On Saturday, Priyanka Chopra, Kareen Kapoor Khan, Shraddha Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor and many other stars of the Hindi film industry also issued responses, terming it ‘disgusting’, ‘disturbing, also demanding justice for the deceased and strict punishment for the perpetrators.

READ: Tuticorin custodial deaths: Ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh to kin announced by AIADMK

Tuticorin Custodial Deaths

P Jayaraj (59) and his son Bennicks (31) were picked up for questioning by the cops in Sathankulam police for violating lockdown rules on June 23. As per police, the duo kept their mobile shop open during the lockdown. They were allegedly beaten to death by the police and as per some reports, were also sexually assaulted in police custody.

This incident led to the state-wide uproar with more than a thousand people protesting in Sathankulam town in Thoothukudi district. The furore even spread to social media with #JusticeForJayarajAndFenix becoming a top trend on Twitter. Meanwhile, the state has suspended four policemen, including two sub-inspectors involved in the incident. On June 23, more than a thousand people had protested in Sathankulam town in Thoothukudi district over the incident.

READ: Sonam Kapoor issues strong statement on Tuticorin custodial deaths as outrage mounts

Court orders probe

The Madurai bench of Madras High Court on Friday asked Kovilpatti judicial magistrate to visit Kovilpatti branch jail, photograph administrative and medical records related to the case and CCTV recordings of the jail building. The court postponed the case for June 30. 

READ: Tuticorin custodial death: Enraged Parineeti Chopra asks 'how can police be danger?'

READ: Tuticorin custodial death: Sitaram Yechury calls for action, says 'guilty must be booked'