Former Ambasamudram Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) and IPS officer Balveer Singh has been booked under various Sections of The Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Juvenile Justice Act. The suspended police officer was accused of torturing detainees including minors from marginalised communities, at the Ambasamudram police station.
Balveer Singh has been charged with Sections 3(1)(e) (Committing an act on a member of a Scheduled Caste or Tribe which is derogatory to human dignity), 3(2)(v) (Commiting any offence against a person knowing that they belong to a Scheduled Caste or Tribe), and 3(2)(va) (Punishment for committing an offence against a person belonging to a Scheduled Caste or Tribe) of The Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, as well as Sections from the Juvenile Justice Act.
On April 17, a First Information Report (FIR) was filed against Balveer Singh and he was booked under Sections 324 (causing hurt by weapons), 326 (grievous hurt by dangerous weapons), and 506/1 (Punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code. Three days after the FIR was filed, the case was transferred to the CB-CID.
The IPS officer has been accused of breaking the teeth of the detainees using sharp stones and cutting pliers. The issue came to light on March 27, when three men recorded a video of themselves saying that they were tortured by Balveer Singh and other police officers at the Ambasamudram police station. One of the men in the video, Chellappa, said that his brother was sexually assaulted and kicked in his chest by the police officers.
When TNM visited Tirunelveli and spoke to the victims, it was revealed that some of them were minors and belonged to marginalised communities.
A day after the video began doing the rounds on social media, Balveer Singh was transferred and placed on a waitlist. On March 28, the Tamil Nadu State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) took suo motu cognisance of the incident and called for an investigation into the matter. On March 29, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin said during an Assembly session that Balveer Singh was suspended. He further said that his government “will not tolerate human rights violations in police stations.” On April 7, the state government appointed senior IAS officer Amudh to look into the custodial violence complaints against Balveer Singh.
Watch: Tirunelveli custodial torture: Juvenile victim speaks to TNM | Balveer Singh IPS | MK Stalin