Thoothukudi police tell RJ Suchitra to take down Instagram video on Jayaraj and Bennix custodial deaths

The Thoothukudi District Police on Friday instructed radio jockey Suchitra to take down her video on the custodial deaths of Jayaraj and Bennix, saying that her narration of the incident was “baseless” and “not indicative of the real happenings”.

In a statement, the police said, “Ms Suchitra’s descriptive narration of the incident is baseless and is not truly indicative of the real happenings. In this video, she falsely exaggerated and sensationalised the chain of events and her allegations seems to be a figment of imagination and is not backed up by any proof.”

The statement added that the Tamil Nadu CB-CID had not found any substance in the allegations made by Suchitra in her video, and that the “video promotes hatred against the police".

The radio jockey’s video on the incident had helped propel the incident to national news and was shared widely by many.

On Wednesday , the CBI took over the investigation into the deaths of a father-son duo in Thoothukudi district after alleged torture at the Sathankulam police station.

The alleged beating by the police personnel resulting in the deaths of J Bennix and his father RP Jeyaraj on 20 June and 23 June, respectively, has evoked strong criticism from political parties as well as civil society members who said it was akin to the George Floyd incident in the US.

It also triggered demands for police reforms in the country and prompted the state government to recommend a probe by the CBI.

With inputs from agencies