Chennai, Sept 24:
The Chennai POCSO Special Court has directed the police to file their response to the bail petitions filed by Shanthi and her husband Mahendra Simhan, who were arrested along with Gem Granites founder R Veeramani in a case involving alleged sexual offences against minor girls.
Shanthi and Mahendra were arrested on August 29 along with Veeramani and remanded in judicial custody. Veeramani was subsequently taken into police custody for questioning as part of the investigation. Police have since said that the probe has identified the survivor in the video that led to the registration of the case, and statements have been recorded before a magistrate.
In their bail petitions, Shanthi and Mahendra argued that the case was registered in October 2025 based on a complaint relating to an alleged incident said to have occurred in 2019. They questioned the delay and contended that the complainant was neither the alleged victim nor the parents or guardians of the victims. They also claimed that the evidence had already been collected and that there was no possibility of influencing witnesses.
The petitioners further submitted that they had been in custody for nearly three weeks and that police had not sought their custody for interrogation. They said they were willing to comply with any conditions imposed by the court and sought bail.
When the petitions came up before Judge Padma, the police submitted that the identities of the alleged victims were being kept strictly confidential. The prosecution also told the court that there had been no delay in producing the accused before the magistrate and that all procedures had been followed in accordance with law.
After hearing the submissions, the court directed the police to file their counter to the bail petitions and adjourned the matter to September 29.
The investigation into the case has widened in recent days. Police have also arrested a former Gem Granites employee, Ganesan, alleging that he possessed a video related to the case and failed to inform the authorities.