91% of TN Cops Think 'Torture' Sometimes Necessary: Report

NINETY-ONE per cent of the police personnel in Tamil Nadu are likely to "highly or moderately" support the view that "custodial torture is sometimes necessary and acceptable to gain information" during investigation, according to the Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) 2025, compiled based on detailed interviews with 8,276 cops of different ranks from 16 states and Delhi.

- GAUTHAM SELVARAJAN @ Chennai

In the wake of the recent alleged custodial killing of B Ajithkumar (27) in Sivaganga district, the report, brought out by Lokniti - Centre for the Study of Developing Societies in collaboration with Common Cause on March 31, showed that TN police have a higher propensity to resort to extra-judicial methods than most other states.

The 91% of cops in TN who "highly (56%) or moderately (35%)" support custodial torture sometimes were the highest, followed by Rajasthan (90%). The remaining nine per cent in TN expressed "low or very low" support.

However, in terms of those who "highly" supported this view, TN ranked second (56%) after Gujarat (63%).

As per the report, Gujarat performed poorly on most parameters, while Kerala was at the other end of the spectrum with interviewees there more inclined to follow legal procedures. For instance, only 11% of cops in Kerala expressed "high or moderate" support to torture.

TN cops (87%) found "special squads that can detain people indefinitely" to be "very" or "somewhat" useful as a measure to reduce crime. It was one such "special team" that allegedly tortured Ajithkumar, leading to his death.