The Madras High Court has ordered the Tamil Nadu government to pay Rs 25 lakh to a woman whose name was revealed twice by the government in connection with the Pollachi sexual assault case. While Coimbatore Superintendent of Police SP Pandiarajan had mentioned her name during a press meet, Tamil Nadu Home Secretary Niranjan Mardi revealed it in an order transferring the case to the CBI.
The court also instructed the government to initiate action against Pandiarajan for revealing the identity of the survivor. The Pollachi case has caused a stir in the state with protests against the authorities taking place every day. Since the victim’s name had been revealed by the Coimbatore police and later by the state home secretary in his G.O. transferring the investigation to the CBI (March 13), “great damage has been caused” to her and she must be compensated, said the court, while pointing out that Sec 228(A) of IPC and also the Supreme Court order in 2012 in Nipun Saxena and another Vs Union of India and others, have been violated by the disclosure of the victim’s identity.
The Bench comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and SS Sundar was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by one Ilamugil of Trichy seeking ban on social media circulating videos, audio files and photos relating to heinous crimes such as rape-in the context of the heavy social media traffic of the Pollachi sex scam. The Madras High Court also ordered that all the videos be removed from the internet. The order came from the Madurai bench of the High Court.
The court also instructed the government to initiate action against Pandiarajan for revealing the identity of the survivor. The Pollachi case has caused a stir in the state with protests against the authorities taking place every day. Since the victim’s name had been revealed by the Coimbatore police and later by the state home secretary in his G.O. transferring the investigation to the CBI (March 13), “great damage has been caused” to her and she must be compensated, said the court, while pointing out that Sec 228(A) of IPC and also the Supreme Court order in 2012 in Nipun Saxena and another Vs Union of India and others, have been violated by the disclosure of the victim’s identity.
The Bench comprising Justices N Kirubakaran and SS Sundar was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by one Ilamugil of Trichy seeking ban on social media circulating videos, audio files and photos relating to heinous crimes such as rape-in the context of the heavy social media traffic of the Pollachi sex scam. The Madras High Court also ordered that all the videos be removed from the internet. The order came from the Madurai bench of the High Court.
