In brief
Nine police officers in India have been sentenced to death in connection with the deaths of P. Jeyaraj and his son Benicks, who died in custody after being arrested for violating lockdown rules in 2020. The judge condemned the horrific abuse of authority by the officers, stating their actions were motivated by the intent to kill. The case has reignited discussions on police brutality in India, prompting widespread protests and calls for policing reforms.
Nine police officers have been sentenced to death in India over the deaths in custody of a father and son in 2020. P Jeyaraj, 58, and his son Benicks, 38, both died in jail in the southern state of Tamil Nadu - days after they were detained for allegedly keeping their mobile phone shop open in breach of lockdown rules during the Covid-19 pandemic. The two men were stripped and ruthlessly assaulted in front of each other, the sentencing judge said on Monday - describing the case as a clear abuse of authority. They did this with the intention of killing, he stated.The officers, who were found guilty of murder last month, are eligible to appeal against their sentences. The judge emphasized that the officers attacked unarmed individuals, arguing that their education and background should not mitigate their crime. In total, ten officers were arrested in connection with the case, though one had died of Covid-19 prior to the trial.This incident triggered major protests across Tamil Nadu, with calls for justice coming from prominent figures including opposition leader Rahul Gandhi and cricket star Shikhar Dhawan on social media. The case has sparked renewed scrutiny of police brutality in India, where rights groups report that hundreds die in custody each year, often due to torture aimed at extracting confessions. In response to ongoing concerns, UN experts have urged India to undertake significant reforms to modernize its policing in alignment with international human rights standards.
