Nine Policemen Sentenced to Death in India Over Covid Custody

Published: April 7, 2026. The English Chronicle Desk. The English Chronicle Online — Championing human rights and judicial accountability.

A trial court in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, has delivered a historic and landmark verdict by sentencing nine policemen to death for the brutal custodial torture and murder of a father and son during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown. The ruling, delivered on Monday, April 6, 2026, marks the conclusion of a six-year legal battle that began with an incident that horrified the nation and drew international comparisons to global cases of police brutality. First Additional District and Sessions Judge G. Muthukumaran described the case as “rarest of rare,” noting that the very people entrusted with protecting the public had turned into perpetrators of heinous violence.

The victims, 58-year-old P. Jayaraj and his 31-year-old son J. Benicks, were traders in the small town of Sathankulam. On June 19, 2020, they were detained by local police on the pretext of violating lockdown restrictions by keeping their mobile accessories shop open beyond permitted hours—a claim the Central Bureau of Investigation later proved to be entirely false. What followed was a night of unimaginable horror inside the Sathankulam police station. The court established that the duo was subjected to relentless, premeditated assault and stripped of their dignity as an “act of vengeance” after they reportedly questioned the police’s aggressive behavior.

Witness testimonies and forensic evidence presented during the trial painted a harrowing picture of the events. A woman constable serving as a key witness testified to seeing bloodstains on the station’s walls and furniture, while medical reports confirmed that both men suffered catastrophic internal and external injuries. Despite their critical condition, they were remanded to judicial custody before succumbing to their injuries within days of each other. The court remarked that “the heart shudders” while reviewing the details of the torture, emphasizing that the victims were unarmed and posed no threat to the officers involved.

The nine convicted officers include a former inspector, two sub-inspectors, and six other personnel of varying ranks. The judge emphasized that a mere life sentence would be insufficient to address the gravity of a “social evil” like custodial death. By awarding the maximum penalty, the court intended to send a definitive deterrent message to law enforcement agencies across India. In addition to the death sentences, the court imposed a collective fine of over 1.40 crore rupees to be paid as compensation to the surviving family members, who expressed a sense of hard-won peace following the announcement.

Human rights advocates have hailed the verdict as a turning point for police accountability in India. For years, custodial violence has often gone unpunished due to systemic shielding of officers, but the intervention of the Madras High Court and the subsequent CBI probe ensured that the truth was not buried. As the legal community reflects on this decision, the Sathankulam case stands as a grim reminder of the absolute necessity for responsibility to accompany power. While the convicts are expected to appeal the decision in higher courts, the current ruling serves as a profound acknowledgment of the value of human life and the sanctity of the rule of law.

Read More At>>