Kallakurichi Student Death: Madras HC Orders Parents To Collect Body From Police

The HC set up a team of experts to consolidate the postmortem reports and come out with their own report in a month.

On 17 July, the situation escalated to violence with several vehicles and buildings being burnt.

(Image: The Quint)

The Madras High Court on Friday, 22 July, ordered the family of the Class 12 student who died in Kallakurichi, to accept her body which is currently in police custody, and asked the parents not to draw the case out further.

The court was hearing a plea by the Tamil Nadu government, seeking direction to the parents to collect the student’s mortal remains and conduct the last rites.

The high court bench ordered the parents to collect the body no later than 11 am on Saturday, 23 July, failing which police action would be taken.

The parents have agreed to collect the body between 6 am and 7 am on Saturday.

Family of Victim Alleges Foul Play

The family of the Kallakurichi Class 12 student, who died by suicide on 12 July, has alleged foul play in their daughter’s death, and their request for a doctor of their choosing to be in the team conducting the second postmortem was denied by the Supreme Court.

However, in some relief to them, the Madras High Court on Friday also appointed a team of three doctors from Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) to study the two post-mortem reports and submit a report of their own in a month’s time.

The Class 12 student’s father had alleged that the report of the second post-mortem had been tampered with and that he was not allowed to attend the procedure.

The police submitted to the court that the post-mortem procedure was recorded on camera, and that the second autopsy did not reveal anything new. The court reprimanded the girl’s father for trying to delay the case, and ordered her family to accept their daughter’s body, which is currently in police custody.

The Madras High Court, on 18 July, had ordered a second post-mortem to be conducted by Dr Geetanjali from Villupuram government hospital, Dr Juliana Jayanthi from Trichy GH, Dr Gokulanathan from Salem GH and retired Dr Santhakumari, a forensic science expert.

SC Dismisses Father’s Request To Stay Autopsy

The girl’s father moved the Supreme Court with a plea that the second post-mortem be put off for a while and a team of doctors of his choice be allowed to conduct the autopsy.

He also alleged that it was done in “undue haste” and in a “shabby manner”. The apex court refused the stay and the autopsy was conducted.

The student was found dead in her hostel at the Kanimayoor Sakthi Matriculation school in Tamil Nadu’s Kallakurichi district. While the school claimed that this was a suicide, her parents have alleged foul play in her death and began protesting outside the school.

However, on 17 July, the situation escalated to violence with several vehicles and buildings burnt.

Since then, the police have arrested two teachers at the school who allegedly “tortured the student and drove her to suicide,” as per a note found in the girl’s room after her death.

(Published in an arrangement with The News Minute.)