Sattankulam custodial deaths: Family wants strong punishment for convicted policemen

Family of custodial death victims demands harsh punishment for nine convicted policemen to prevent future abuses of power.

Family members of trader Jayaraj and his son Benicks, who died of custodial torture at the Sattankulam police station six years ago, on Monday sought stringent punishment to the nine policemen convicted in the case.

Addressing journalists on the Madurai District Court premises following the conviction, J. Selvarani (wife of Jayaraj and mother of Benicks) and J. Persis (daughter of Jayaraj and elder sister of Benicks) said they had been waiting for this day and hoped the nine would get an appropriate/maximum sentence.

Recollecting the traumatic incident, Selvarani and Persis said they had lost their beloved family members. Jayaraj and Benicks were both innocent and died due to police excess. The sentence to be awarded to the nine convicted police personnel should serve as a deterrent to those in power so that they do not misuse the power and there were no more incidents like the Sattankulam incident, they said.