Ajithkumar custodial death: 4 more cops, including DSP, remanded to judicial custody

MADURAI: A trial court on Thursday remanded four police personnel, including a former Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), to judicial custody in connection with the custodial death of B. Ajithkumar at Madapuram in Sivaganga district.

The V Additional District and Sessions Court, Madurai, framed a murder charge under Section 103 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, against the four accused — former Manamadurai DSP N. Shanmugasundaram, former Thiruppuvanam Inspector S.P. Ramesh Kumar, former Sub-Inspector Sivakumar and former Head Constable Ilayaraja and issued directions to remanded them.

The trial court also observed that the accused had not filed bail petitions before the court. The CBI opposed their release on bail, submitting that their release could affect the investigation in the sensitive custodial-death case.

The prosecution informed the court that the witness protection order had been arbitrarily withdrawn by the present Thiruppuvanam Inspector, Sethumani Mathavan.

The four accused had earlier approached the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court seeking bail. The High Court had directed them to appear before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Madurai, and execute bonds. However, they had not filed bail petitions before the trial court.

Ajithkumar, a security guard at the Madapuram Badrakali Amman Temple, died in June 2025 after he was taken into police custody in connection with a complaint over missing jewellery. The CBI, which took over the investigation into his custodial death, subsequently arrested six police personnel and filed a chargesheet against them.

The CBI later filed a supplementary chargesheet against these four police personnel in the trail court alleging their involvement in the Ajithkumar’s death.