WP CRL./2630/2026 of B.Devishree Vs The State Rep. by, The Commissioner of Police on 16 October 2026

ORDER

Heard Mr. P.James Victor Rajkumar for the petitioner and Mr. S. Yogaraja Sekar for respondents 1 to 5.

2. The petitioner is the daughter of one Mr. T. Balaji and Mrs. Lakshmi. The couple had an elder daughter by name B. Yuvashree. Lakshmi died in the year 2007 and Yuvashree died in 2021, leaving behind only Mr. T.Balaji and the petitioner herein as family members. The petitioner herein was residing with her grandmother, one Tmt. Logu, who passed away in 2021.

3. Mr.T. Balaji, who was residing in Cuddalore, left the place and is alleged to have gone over to Koyambedu, Chennai. The petitioner came to know of this fact and made desperate attempts to trace out her father. As nothing was forthcoming, she lodged a complaint with the 4th respondent on

WP Crl. No. 2630 of 2026 23.02.2024. The police registered the complaint as C.S.R.No.177 of 2024. They made serious attempts to trace out the petitioner’s father, but he was not traceable. Therefore, the complaint was registered as an FIR in Crime No.66 of 2025 on 24.02.2025.

4. As the missing person, Mr.T. Balaji, was an employee of TNSTC, one of his co-employees, Mr. K. Ramanathan, informed the petitioner that her father passed away at the Koyambedu Bus Terminus. Therefore, the petitioner and one gentleman by name Mr. Sivagurunathan, under whose protection the petitioner is now living, approached the police. The petitioner was informed that the dead body had been found in Koyambedu and had been handed over to Udavum Karangal, a non-governmental organisation, for the purpose of cremation. It was also reported that the cremation was completed. The petitioner, thereafter, approached Udavum Karangal and obtained photographs of the dead body. She is of the opinion that the deceased is her father.

5. She has moved this Court seeking a transfer of the investigation from the file of the 4th respondent police to the file of the CBCID. She suspects that the police have wrongly identified her father as someone else and have disposed of the dead body utilising the services of Udavum Karangal. Feeling aggrieved over the fact that the petitioner had not been informed about the death of her father, she has come forward with the present petition.

WP Crl. No. 2630 of 2026

6. When the matter came up on 01.10.2026, I called upon Mr. S.Yogaraja Sekar to find out whether any post-mortem was done and any viscera of the dead body was available. He reported that no viscera of the dead body had been retained nor had any identifiable details had been preserved by the police. He stated that a dead body was found within the precincts of CMBT, Koyambedu and that, on a search conducted on the dead body, a phone number was discernible. The police contacted the person through that phone number.

7. One Uma stated that the deceased is her brother. She expressed difficulty in travelling from Hyderabad, where she is stationed, to Chennai, for the purpose of carrying out the funeral obsequies and ceremonies. The police, left with no other option, went ahead and handed over the body to Udavum Karangal, which readily came forward to conduct the funeral ceremony.

8. As the petitioner believes she has been rendered an orphan and her complaint has been pending for more than two years, I called upon Mr.S.Yogaraja Sekar to verify the status of the case and report the same to this Court.

9. When the matter was taken up today (16.10.2026), an affidavit was filed by the 4th respondent. A reading of the affidavit shows that the complaint

WP Crl. No. 2630 of 2026 in Crime No.410 of 2024 had been closed as 'action dropped'. This complaint had been lodged by Uma with respect to her missing brother Prasanna. Insofar as the complaint lodged by the petitioner in Crime No.66 of 2025 on the file of the fourth respondent is concerned, the counter affidavit states that the matter is still under investigation. The police are clear that the dead body found within the precincts of CMBT, Koyambedu, is not the dead body of the writ petitioner’s father. It is the body of Prasanna, the brother of the complainant Uma, in Crime No.410 of 2024.

10. That being the position, the prayer sought for by the writ petitioner cannot be granted. As serious implications with respect to the rights over the property as well as the other service benefits are involved, the police shall continue to investigate Crime No.66 of 2025 on the file of the 4th respondent. They shall make all serious efforts to trace out the father of the petitioner.

11. With the above observations, the writ petition stands dismissed. 16-10-2026 Index: Yes/No Neutral Citation: Yes/No KJ/ARL

WP Crl. No. 2630 of 2026 V.LAKSHMINARAYANAN, J. KJ To

1. The Commissioner of Police Greater Chennai Police, Chennai.

2. The Superintendent of Police Cuddalore District.

3. The Inspector of Police K-11, CMBT Police Station, Chennai.

4. The Inspector of Police Nellikuppam Police Station, Cuddalore.

5. The Registrar of Births and Deaths Chennai. WP Crl. No. 2630 of 2026

6. Udavum Karangal 460, Anna Arch, 25th Street, Arumbakkam, Chennai.

7. General Manager-TNSTC Lawrence Road, Cuddalore. 16-10-2026