Madras HC Seeks DGP's Reply on CCTV Footage Retention at Police Stations

The Madras High Court has sought a clear response from the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police (DGP) on whether CCTV footage from cameras installed at all police stations across the state is being preserved for the mandated 18-month period. The court's query comes amid concerns that some offices may be retaining recordings for far shorter durations.

Justice V. Lakshminarayanan directed the DGP to file a report by September 10, 2026, on the matter. The judge underscored that any retention period shorter than 18 months would constitute a violation of orders issued by both the Supreme Court and a Division Bench of the High Court.

The development took place during a hearing where senior counsel R. Shunmugasundaram, assisted by advocate Shakeena Abdul Gafoor, highlighted an affidavit from an Additional Superintendent of Police at the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (V&AC) office in Coimbatore. The affidavit reportedly admitted that the office's digital video recorder (DVR) could only store footage for 15 days.

The counsel referred to the Supreme Court's 2021 ruling in Paramvir Singh Saini versus Baljit Singh and a 2024 order by a Division Bench of the High Court. In both instances, the then DGPs had assured the courts that CCTV footage from police stations would be preserved for 18 months.

The matter arose from a petition filed by A. Saravanakumar, a Sub Inspector of Police with the Civil Supplies-CID in Salem. He faces allegations of demanding a bribe from an individual caught smuggling 1,250 kg of rice meant for the Public Distribution System (PDS).

The petitioner sought a direction to secure and preserve CCTV footage from the V&AC office in Coimbatore between September 15 and October 15, 2025. He argued that this footage would help prove that a corruption complaint against him was false. However, the V&AC informed the court that providing data for that period was impossible due to the DVR's limited 15-day retention capacity.