POCSO Case Transfers: Arun, Kannan Placed on Reserve
The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday, September 24, placed two senior IPS officers on compulsory wait amid scrutiny over the handling of the POCSO case involving R. Veeramani, founder of Gem Granites. The action came as questions continued to be raised about how an earlier complaint related to the case was handled by the police.
A. Arun, an Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) and Director of the Tamil Nadu Police Academy, was transferred with immediate effect and placed on compulsory wait. N. Kannan, Inspector General of Police and Commissioner of Coimbatore City Police, was also transferred and placed on compulsory wait. Arun had earlier served as the Commissioner of Greater Chennai Police.
Following the transfers, Rajeev Kumar, DGP (Training), was given additional charge of the Tamil Nadu Police Academy. IG R.V. Ramya Bharathi was given additional charge as Commissioner of Coimbatore City Police. Assistant Commissioner of Police M.A. Yasmin of the Koyambedu sub-division was also placed under vacancy reserve.
The government order did not publicly specify the reasons for the transfers. However, the action came amid scrutiny of the earlier handling of the POCSO complaint against Veeramani. According to reports, Tamil Nadu Congress Scheduled Caste Department president M.P. Ranjan Kumar has claimed that he approached Chennai police with information about the allegations in November 2024.
Kannan, who was serving as Additional Commissioner of Police, South Chennai, at the time, told The News Minute that he received the complaint and said he had escalated the matter to then Chennai Police Commissioner A. Arun because children were allegedly involved. Arun later told the publication that comments should be obtained from the present police commissioner because the matter was a sensitive POCSO case.
The case officially came to the attention of the police in October 2025 after a child-rights activist reportedly approached the Anti-Vice Squad with a pen drive containing footage that allegedly showed a minor girl being sexually assaulted. An FIR was subsequently registered. Police later identified Veeramani as the man allegedly seen in the footage.
The investigation later faced controversy after police submitted a closure report to the Special POCSO Court. The court rejected the attempt to close the case and ordered further investigation. The renewed investigation subsequently led to the identification of the girl in the original footage and further examination of other possible survivors.
Veeramani, along with Shanthi and her husband Mahendra Simhan, was arrested on August 29 in connection with the case. Police have since expanded the investigation and examined digital evidence and other records connected with the allegations.
The transfer of the senior officers does not by itself establish wrongdoing by them. The circumstances surrounding the earlier handling of the complaint remain under examination as the investigation into the POCSO case continues.