Chennai: The State Human Rights Commission directed two policemen to pay a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to a person on charges of foisting a criminal case against him and assaulting him in police custody. He was forced to remove all his clothes in the police station.
In his petition A. Rajinikanth submitted that he was falsely implicated in a criminal case by police in Puzhal police station on the basis of a complaint lodged by Sivakumar for an alleged offence of cheating. On December 20, 2013, at about 3 am, Babu Rajendra Bose, inspector, and Mani, sub inspector of Puzhal police station, took him to the police station and locked him up. He was forced to remove all his clothes and subjected to inhuman treatment. Police asked him to settle the loan to tune of '4 lakh taken from Sivakumar. They also alleged that he had taken 4 and half sovereign of gold rings, a 2 sovereign gold bracelet and a 2 and half sovereign of gold chain from Sivakumar. Police locked him up in the cell at the police station till December 22, 2013, at 4 p.m.
After assaulting and torturing him, he was produced at the judicial magistrate's residence at Velachery on December 22, 2013, at about 6.45 p.m. Even though he spoke of his torture to the magistrate, the latter refused to receive his bail application. Instead of proceeding to Puzhal jail, police took him to a secluded place near the police station and again assaulted him. He sustained injuries. In the petition, he sought action against the policemen.
In their reply, the policemen denied all the allegations. They said that Rajinikanth was arrested only on December 22, 2013, at about 11.00 am and his friend G. Suresh was intimated about the arrest.
Judge D. Jayachandran said that considering the oral and documentary evidence and arguments, the Commission was of the opinion that Rajinikanth was falsely implicated in the criminal case and illegally arrested by Babu Rajendra Bose and Mani and remanded to judicial custody. This amounts to violation of human rights of the complainant. The judge directed them to pay a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the petitioner.
