The Madras High Court has instructed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the sexual assault of a 19-year-old engineering student at Anna University in Chennai. The court’s order came on Saturday following concerns raised over police negligence in handling the case.
The bench, consisting of Justices SM Subramaniam and V Lakshminarayan, also directed the Tamil Nadu government to provide the survivor with an interim compensation of ₹25 lakh. This was in response to the “serious lapse” in revealing her details in the public version of the FIR published on the police website.
In addition, the court mandated that the Tamil Nadu Police ensure the safety of the survivor and her family, offering protection to both.
The incident occurred on December 23, when the survivor, a second-year student, was sitting with her male friend in an open area on campus. She was allegedly assaulted by a 37-year-old man, Gnanasekaran, who first attacked the survivor’s friend before dragging her behind a building and assaulting her. The police later arrested Gnanasekaran following the survivor’s complaint.