Watch: Police encounters: Case closure or burial of truth? | Focus Tamil Nadu

The encounter with Thiruvengadam in Madhavaram in Chennai has raised several questions. 

July has seen two police encounter deaths in Tamil Nadu. Four days before the Thiruvengadam encounter, the police had gunned down ‘MGR Nagar’ Durai, a history sheeter in Pudukkottai. However, the encounter with Thiruvengadam in Madhavaram in Chennai has raised several questions. 

Thiruvengadam had surrendered in the case, and was in police custody at the time he was killed. Police claimed they were taking him to a hideout where he had plotted the murder of Armstrong. He wanted to attend nature’s call and for this the police set him free. He tried to escape and when the police traced him in a tin sheet structure, he tried to attack the police with weapons, following which they fired at him in self defence. 

Critics have questioned why Thiruvengadam, who was in police custody, would want to escape or attack them. Civil rights activists have argued that when a person in custody is gunned down by the police in an encounter, it has a chilling effect onthe co-accused in the case. The co-accused would be forced to confess to the crime, fearing for their life.

We also look at past police encounters in Tamil Nadu.

Presentation: D Suresh Kumar

Production: Shibu Narayan

Video: Thamodharan B.