Overview

• The Madras High Court’s Madurai Bench took suo motu cognisance of Ajith Kumar’s death, questioning the police’s use of force in a theft investigation.
• Five policemen were arrested late on Monday after post-mortem findings revealed 30 to 40 injury marks on the 27-year-old temple guard’s body.
• A rural judicial inquiry led by the Tiruppuvanam District Munsif has begun probing interrogation practices linked to the custodial death.
• Family members and eyewitnesses allege Ajith Kumar was gagged, beaten and assaulted during questioning, prompting protests outside the Tiruppuvanam police station.
• Opposition parties and rights activists have demanded a judicial probe and tougher accountability, pointing to this case as part of a pattern of over two dozen custodial fatalities since 2021.