R. Veeramani booked for abetting suicide of minor in 2004

The Greater Chennai Police have booked Gem Granites owner R. Veeramani on charges of abetting the suicide of a minor in 2004, police sources said on Tuesday.

Investigators also invoked provisions under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against the octogenarian businessmen, his associate Shanti and others, the sources said.

The death of the minor girl came to light recently when police accessed a message sent by Shanti to Veeramani asking if he remembered his involvement in the death of a girl.

Victim identified

A special team formed to investigate the veracity of the message conducted inquiries and identified the victim. Her mother lodged a complaint alleging her daughter was sexually abused by Veeramani and died by suicide. She claimed that though the family lodged a complaint with the local police at that time no action was taken.

“There is an information that the accused gave ₹1 lakh to the family or their close relatives on two occasions. We are verifying this claim,” a police officer said. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising senior women police officers was expediting investigation and charge sheets were expected to be filed next month in the designated court. City Police Commissioner A. Amalraj reviewed the progress made in the case with SIT officers on Wednesday evening. Police were probing the financial transactions of the accused and others suspected to be involved in the case to check if there was any proceeds of crime angle in the offences.

In one of the cases, a bank balance of more than ₹20 crore was found in the account of a suspect and steps were taken to freeze it, the officer said without going into details.

(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the State’s health helpline 104 and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-2464 0050)