Story perspectives

Chennai Police Detain Gem Granites Founder Under Goondas Act

By Drooid · Oct 1, 2026, 4:19 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Chennai Police Detains Veeramani

Greater Chennai Police detained Gem Granites founder R. Veeramani and associates Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan under the Goondas Act.
Commissioner A. Amalraj ordered the detention on October 1, 2026, citing repeated criminal activity and public-order threats.
Veeramani was arrested by the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Unit on August 29, 2026 for alleged POCSO offences.
Police allege INR24.63 crore moved to Shanthi and INR2 crore to Mahendra Simhan’s ICICI account.

Summary

DMK Files Defamation

Madras High Court adjourned the DMK’s petition to summon the chief minister and two ministers for four weeks.
The DMK filed a defamation suit seeking INR1 crore damages from Ministers Aadhav Arjuna and C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar.
The suit also names X Corp, Meta Platforms and YouTube as defendants to remove alleged defamatory posts.
Senior counsel J. Ravindran argued that politicising child-abuse allegations harms justice, echoing the DMK’s stance.

History

Historical Context

Enacted in 1982 by Chief Minister M. G. Ramachandran, Tamil Nadu’s Goondas Act allowed one-year preventive detention of habitual offenders. A 2011 Madras High Court ruling expanded its reach to single offenses, and later amendments added sand smugglers, cyber criminals and sexual offenders. Today Chennai police continue to invoke the act, showing its lasting political impact.

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Chennai Police Detains Veeramani

Greater Chennai Police detained Gem Granites founder R. Veeramani and associates Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan under the Goondas Act.
Commissioner A. Amalraj ordered the detention on October 1, 2026, citing repeated criminal activity and public-order threats.
Veeramani was arrested by the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Unit on August 29, 2026 for alleged POCSO offences.
Police allege INR24.63 crore moved to Shanthi and INR2 crore to Mahendra Simhan’s ICICI account.

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