‘India’s George Floyds’: Father-son death in police custody sparks outrage

Outrage at the death of a father-son duo in the custody of Indian police earlier this week mounted on Saturday, with thousands on social media comparing the incident to the death of George Floyd in the US.

J Jayaraj, 59, and Bennicks Immanuel, 31, were subjected to a brutal thrashing, which resulted in rectal bleeding and eventual death, according to a letter to government officials written by Jayaraj’s wife J Selvarani. The letter, based on eyewitness testimony and reviewed by Reuters, seeks action against the police officers involved.

Police in Sathankulam, a town located 50 kilometers south of the port city of Thoothukudi in southern Tamil Nadu state, said in a first information report (FIR) reviewed by Reuters that Jayaraj and Bennicks were picked up on June 19 for breaching coronavirus lockdown rules.

Bennicks died on June 22 after complaining of breathlessness and Jayaraj died Tuesday, Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami, who oversees the police in the state, said in a statement on Wednesday.

The policemen involved in the incident have been suspended, he added.

Hundreds of thousands of tweets were sent out using the hashtag #JusticeforJayarajandBennix, that was among the top Twitter topics trending in India on Friday and among the top 30 trending globally, with celebrities and politicians condemning police action.

“The George Floyds of India are far too many,” tweeted Jignesh Mevani, a lawmaker in India’s western Gujarat state.