Prisoners’ escape from Theni jail: TNSLSA orders inquiry into alleged torture of inmates

TNSLSA Member Secretary S. Balakrishnan has instructed the chairperson of Theni district legal services authority to visit the Theni district jail and hold an inquiry into the allegations.

Justice S.M. Subramaniam, the seniormost judge of the Madras High Court, in his capacity as the Executive Chairman of Tamil Nadu State Legal Services Authority (TNSLSA) has ordered an inquiry into allegations of 17 prisoners having escaped from Theni district jail only because of torture and ill treatment meted out to them by the warders by not providing food and drinking water.

In compliance of his directive, the TNSLSA Member Secretary S. Balakrishnan has instructed the chairperson of Theni district legal services authority to visit the Theni district jail and hold an inquiry into the allegations besides ascertaining whether the 17 remand prisoners, who were subsequently secured, had been threatened, coerced or prevented from making complaints regarding their ill-treatment.

TNSLSA has also instructed the chairpersons of district legal services authorities in Cuddalore, Madurai, Salem and Tirunelveli to visit the Central Prisons at their respective places, where the 17 remand prisoners had been detained after they were secured by the police and interact with them, in the absence of prison officials, to find out if they were assaulted, intimidated or tortured as it had been alleged.

The chairpersons were directed to verify whether the prisoners were injured and if so, whether they received medical attention. The officers were also asked to record the injuries, the name of the alleged perpetrators, dates, places and nature of assault, and names of the witnesses if the prisoners had been beaten up besides noting down any other violation of fundamental rights and prison rules.

After facilitating the prisoners concerned to approach the legal aid clinics functioning inside the jails, the chairpersons were directed to file their reports before the TNSLSA on or before November 16, 2026.

The TNSLSA had taken note of the alleged human rights violations pursuant to circulation of a video of one of the 17 escaped prisoners complaining about the alleged torture meted out to them inside the prison. The video had been reportedly shot before all the 17 escaped prisoners were recaptured by the police following an extensive search operation and lodged back in prison within 42 hours of their escape on October 26, 2026.