Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], November 4 (ANI): The Madras High Court on Wednesday granted anticipatory bail to Chennai Press Club President M Suresh Vedanayagam and journalists D Prakash and S Sarath Kuumar in connection with a case involving allegations of threatening journalists over the Gem Veeramani case.
The development comes amid an ongoing investigation into the cases registered against granite industrialist Veeramani and others under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
According to police, on October 28, Veeramani was arrested in three cases, while Shanthi, Mahendra Simhan and Lazar were arrested in another case.
Searches were also conducted at the premises of accused Ganesh in Konathur, during which relevant evidence about the cases was seized. Further investigation is underway, and a chargesheet will be filed soon, police said.
The case initially came to light following the recovery of a pen drive containing videos of sexual offences, which led to the initial apprehension of Veeramani.
Following this, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted on the orders of the Director General of Police/Head of Police Force (DGP/HoPF), Tamil Nadu, to investigate the POCSO cases, police said.
Earlier on Monday, Tamil Nadu Police said they were taking steps to freeze the passport of absconding businessman N Prakash amid the ongoing investigation into the case.
In a press statement, police said Prakash had allegedly assisted Veeramani in attempts to cover up the crimes and had fled the country.
“Since an individual named Prakash, who assisted Veeramani in his attempts to cover up the crimes, has fled the country, measures are being taken to impound/freeze his passport and bring him back to India from overseas,” the police statement said.
Police further said that a Look Out Circular (LOC) had been issued to prevent accused persons associated with the cases against Veeramani from fleeing abroad.
So far, eight accused, including the main accused Veeramani, have been arrested and lodged in Puzhal Central Prison. Eight cases have been registered against Veeramani and others under the POCSO Act, police said.
Veeramani, Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan were arrested following allegations of sexual offences against minors. The case was subsequently taken up for investigation by a SIT constituted by the Tamil Nadu Police.
The accused businessman was arrested on August 29 along with two other alleged accused. A POCSO Special Court subsequently granted three days of custody for his interrogation.
Considering his age and health, the questioning was conducted inside Puzhal prison under video recording by the Central Crime Branch’s Anti-Vice Squad.
Police later identified seven additional minor girls allegedly linked to the case, and their statements were recorded before the Special Court dealing with POCSO cases.
After one survivor was found to belong to a Scheduled Caste community, provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were also added to the case. The Tamil Nadu government directed police to intensify the investigation and identify and take action against everyone found to be connected with the alleged offences.
A special team comprising women police Sub-Inspectors has also been formed to identify minor girls appearing in the video and assist in the ongoing probe. The Central Crime Branch has been examining the earlier investigation and the circumstances surrounding the closure of the case. (ANI)
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