Just days after the horrific custodial death of 27-year-old Ajith Kumar in Sivagangai, fresh evidence of police brutality in Tamil Nadu has emerged. A six-month-old CCTV video from Theni district has surfaced, showing an autorickshaw driver named Ramesh being beaten inside the Devanathanpatti police station.
Ramesh was detained on January 14, 2025, for allegedly creating a public nuisance while drunk. The video — now public — shows police personnel mercilessly assaulting him inside the station. The footage was obtained via the Right to Information (RTI) Act by lawyer Pandiarajan, who was pursuing an unrelated case but chose to release the clip to highlight systemic abuse.
“This shows how police violence in Tamil Nadu isn’t isolated — it’s recurring,” Pandiarajan said.
The incident gains chilling significance in the wake of Ajith Kumar’s death, which has triggered statewide outrage. The Madras High Court condemned the custodial killing, calling it “a brutal act” and stating bluntly: “The state has killed its own citizen.” Ajith’s post-mortem revealed 44 injuries, with reports of chilli powder being used on his wounds, mouth, and ears.
The court slammed investigative failures and questioned how someone with no criminal background could be subjected to such horrific torture.
Facing public anger, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has transferred Ajith’s case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), calling the act “unjustifiable” and vowing that “such incidents must never happen again.”