Quick Summary: On December 4, 2025, the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court canceled the detention of B. Pandithurai, who was held for being a "Sexual Offender." The court ordered his release, citing problems with the detention order.
B. Savundammal filed a request for her son, B. Pandithurai, who was detained on April 14, 2025, under the Tamil Nadu Act 14 of 1982. The detention was contested in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court. B. Savundammal argued that the detention was unfair and asked for a court order to set her son free.
The case is about an incident on March 13, 2025. A complaint was filed by Rameshwari, claiming that B. Pandithurai tried to hug her daughter, an 8th-grade student, while she was walking to school in Dindigul. The girl managed to escape, leading to B. Pandithurai's arrest under certain sections of the law and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.
"He forced her to get on a bike and tried to hug her," stated the complaint.
The detention order was given by the District Magistrate and District Collector of Dindigul. However, B. Savundammal's lawyer argued that the order was invalid because the power to detain had expired. The Government Order allowing such detentions was only valid for three months from January 18, 2025.
Justices G.K. Ilanthiraiyan and R. Poornima looked into the case and found that the detention was based only on this incident without any other pending cases against B. Pandithurai. They decided that the detention order was invalid due to these issues.
"Considering the nature of the allegations and the fact that he has been detained based on a single incident, this Court is inclined to cancel the detention order."
The court ordered B. Pandithurai's immediate release unless he was needed for another case. However, he must cooperate with the ongoing trial in the Special Court for Exclusive Trial of Cases under the POCSO Act in Dindigul.
