Chennai POCSO case: How a closed probe against granite baron was reopened

Chennai Police closed a POCSO case against granite businessman R Veeramani in February after concluding there was no basis to proceed, even though investigators had a video purportedly showing the sexual assault of a minor girl. Seven months later, the case has been revived, the girl has been traced and identified, and three people have been arrested.

How the case began

On October 6, 2025, a 42-year-old child rights worker was at her office when an unidentified man handed her an envelope and left. It contained a sheet of paper and a pen drive. The note named Veeramani and alleged he had sexually assaulted a minor girl in the bedroom of a house belonging to his associate Shanthi, and said a recording of the assault was on the drive.

The worker viewed the footage and went to the Anti-Vice Squad the same day. The complaint moved up the police hierarchy to the Central Crime Branch, and a case was registered on October 7 under Sections 7 and 8 of the POCSO Act. Two days later, the investigation was handed to the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Anti-Vice Squad.

The February closure report

A copy of the closure report submitted to the Special POCSO Court records how the probe reached what police then treated as a dead end. The messenger could not be traced: there was no CCTV at the complainant's office, and cameras in the area were not functioning. A search of the house named in the complaint, conducted after informing the court, yielded nothing. An authorised cyber expert examined the DVR at the property, but with the footage indicating a 2019 incident, nothing could be recovered after six years.

Summoned by police, Veeramani denied being the man in the recording and said he did not know the girl. Shanthi acknowledged knowing Veeramani but said she did not know the girl; she said the room shown in the recording was part of her house, and that outsiders were never allowed in "under any circumstances".

Four former domestic workers whose names Shanthi provided could not be examined because she said she did not know their current whereabouts. Two people then working at the house, a roadside businessman nearby and a hospital employee who knew Shanthi and her husband all said outsiders were not permitted inside. Police said they made "every possible effort" to trace the girl through confidential inquiries but could not establish her identity or age. A check of the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems found no previous criminal cases against Veeramani or Shanthi.

On February 18, the case was classified as "Further Action Dropped" and the complainant was served notice. The report carried a qualification, citing a November 2025 Madras High Court order: if evidence or witnesses emerged later, action would be taken in accordance with law. The endorsement also directed the investigating officer to pursue the matter with due diligence.

The case reopens

The Special POCSO Court refused to accept the closure report and ordered further investigation. The renewed probe led to the arrest of Veeramani, Shanthi and her husband Mahendra Simhan on August 29. Investigators traced the girl purportedly seen in the 2019 video, and her statement was recorded before a Judicial Magistrate, in which she identified herself and Veeramani. Police have also invoked provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against the accused.

The investigation has since widened beyond the original video. The Central Crime Branch arrested Ganesan, a former employee of Veeramani's Gem Granites, after claiming to have found on his mobile phone a video allegedly featuring Veeramani and a minor girl. Ganesan, who worked at Gem Granites for 23 years and is currently employed with Balaji Global Enterprises, was arrested for allegedly failing to report the matter. He has been remanded in judicial custody and lodged in Puzhal Central Prison.

Investigators are trying to establish how Ganesan obtained the video, who sent it to him and why he retained it without informing the police. The Central Crime Branch is questioning people connected with the case and examining digital evidence to trace the source and circulation of the footage. Police have identified other alleged victims, some believed to have been minors at the time of the alleged offences.