Tamil Nadu water tank contamination case: 3 Dalit men named in chargesheet

The FIR was registered on a complaint that children who had consumed water from a water tank at Vengaivayal village suffered from vomiting, fever and had to be hospitalised.

Pramod Madhav

Case involved children falling ill in 2022 from drinking contaminated water

Investigation revealed incident as revenge plot by a police constable

Chargesheet filed against 3 Dalit men, further investigation ongoing

Crime Branch Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) of Tamil Nadu filed a chargesheet against three Dalit young men in the 2022 Vengaivayal water tank contamination case.

On December 26, 2022, Vellalar Police registered a case under section 328 of the IPC, for administering substances to deliberately cause harm, and sections 3(1)(b), 3(1)(x), 3(2) (v a) of the Prevention of Atrocities against Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST), for specific acts of discrimination or harm against members of SC/ST by dumping obnoxious substances such as excreta, sewage, or carcasses on or near their premises, pollution their water sources, including other relevant charges.

The FIR was registered on a complaint that children who had consumed water from a water tank at Vengaivayal village suffered from vomiting, fever and had to be hospitalised.

The complainant, K Kanagaraj, alleged that human faeces were found floating on the water in the tank by a few men.

As soon as the news broke, there was public outcry with opposition parties raising questions about the safety of Dalits in Tamil Nadu. Opposition parties questioned the delay in the investigation, which also involved DNA sample collection and analysis.

The case was transferred to CB-CID on January 1, 2023, and an enquiry was conducted with 397 witnesses while 196 mobile phone numbers were investigated along with more than one lakh calls placed between 87 towers analysed.

On the basis of their investigation, the Tamil Nadu Police claimed that the children were not affected after drinking human faeces-contaminated water.

A statement released by the Tamil Nadu Police stated that two months prior to reporting the issue, Muthukadu Panchayat Union President Padma’s husband Muthaiya had insulted Jeevanandham, father of Constable Muraliraja, for raising questions about water tank maintenance.

“The investigation also revealed that the incident was planned and conducted by Muraliraja as an act of revenge. Muraliraja, Sudharshan, Muthaiya and R Muthukrishnan’s smartphones were confiscated from which deleted pictures and audio recordings were retrieved which proved the incident”, claimed the police statement.

Based on evidence, a case was registered against Muraliraja, Sudharshan and Muthukrishnan and a chargesheet was filed in Pudukottai Special Court.

Incidentally, a video of two men atop the water tank with human faeces in a plastic bag and conversing surfaced. Also, two audio clips where Sudharshan was allegedly speaking about the incident with his mother and aunt also came to light and went viral.

Further investigation into the matter is underway, police said.

Courtesy : India Today

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