Gem Veeramani POCSO case: Former Chennai Commissioner of Police Arun named as accused

Former Chennai Police Commissioner Arun IPS, former Anti-Vice Squad Assistant Commissioner Yasmin and five other police personnel have been named as accused by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the POCSO case against GEM Granites founder Veeramani.The police officers have been booked under Section 21 of the POCSO Act (failing to report or record a case of child sexual abuse) and Sections 199 (disobey legal directions), 235 (false evidence) and 238 (causing the disappearance of evidence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The chargesheet relates to the first case registered against Veeramani and others. The then Additional Commissioner of Police (South) Kannan has not been named in the FIR.. According to police sources, Kannan’s role was limited to receiving the complaint from Congress functionary Ranjan Kumar and forwarding it to the then Commissioner of Police. Hence, his name was not included as an accused.The SIT chargesheet filed on Wednesday, November 11, before the Special Court for Exclusive Trial of Cases under the POCSO Act in Chennai, reportedly names eight accused, including Veeramani, his two drivers and the seven police personnel.The chargesheet was filed in Crime No. 11/2026, one of the seven cases registered following the formation of the SIT. All the seven cases relate to nine victims and were registered based on complaints from the survivors or their mothers.According to the police press release, the case in which the chargesheet was filed was registered on September 27, 2026, based on a complaint by the mother of a 14-year-old girl belonging to a Scheduled Caste community. The police said Veeramani sexually abused the minor. His drivers, Parthiban and Babu, allegedly knew about the offence and transported the child to Veeramani’s premises, where the abuse took place.Veeramani, Parthiban and Babu have been charged under Sections 366 and 506(2) of the Indian Penal Code, relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.The final report, comprising around 720 pages and listing 40 witnesses, was filed within 46 days of the registration of the case, the police said.Background of the case It was initially believed that R Veeramani’s conduct was first brought to the attention of the Chennai police in October 2025, when a child rights activist approached the Anti-Vice Squad (AVS) on October 6 with a pen drive containing visuals that purportedly showed a minor girl being sexually assaulted. However, it later came to light that the allegations had reached senior Chennai police officials almost a year earlier. In September 2024, Congress leader and MP Ranjan Kumar told TNM that he had submitted a complaint against Veeramani to the then Additional Commissioner of Police (South), N Kannan, on November 21, 2024. He claimed that he had also shared video clips with the Anti-Vice Squad and subsequently met its then Assistant Commissioner, MA Yasmin. Kannan confirmed to TNM that he had received the complaint and escalated it to the then Chennai Police Commissioner A Arun. However, no FIR was registered at the time. The revelation raised questions about why the police did not act on the complaint and why the official police version placed the beginning of the investigation in October 2025. An FIR was registered on October 7, 2025. The initial investigation by the AVS failed to identify or trace the minor girl seen in the video. In February 2026, the police filed a closure report before the Special POCSO Court, citing the inability to establish the identity and whereabouts of the survivor and a lack of sufficient evidence to proceed. However, the Special POCSO Court rejected the closure report and questioned how the police could fail to establish the crime scene despite having visuals of the alleged assault. The court subsequently directed further investigation, and the case was reopened in July 2026. Fresh investigation was ordered and it led to searches at Veeramani’s aide Mahendra Simhan's residence in Teynampet, where police recovered what they described as the original visuals of the alleged sexual assault from a digital device. Police also found indications of an attempt to destroy evidence. On August 29, 2026, police arrested Veeramani, Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan. Police alleged that the couple had facilitated the offences and were involved in handling or destroying evidence. The investigation subsequently identified the minor girl in the video, whose statement was recorded before a Judicial Magistrate. Later, many more victims came forward with complaints.