Cases beyond media glare remain stuck for years

It took 162 days for the lone suspect in the case to be convicted. The incident happened on Dec 23 and was reported the next day. In Feb a special investigation team formed by Madras HC laid the chargesheet, and on Monday, Gnanasekaran got life term.

While appreciating the swift conviction in the case, jurists and activists point out that several thousands of other victims — especially in so-called non-sensational cases — are left waiting indefinitely for justice.

More than 46,000 criminal cases in Chennai remained unresolved as of 2023, and many involved serious offences such as murder, cheating, and robbery. Of these, 6,000 cases were idling for more than a decade, with no chargesheet filed. A chargesheet marks end of police probe and beginning of trial in court.

"Only high-profile cases with media glare move fast. What about those in rural or under-reported areas without that visibility," asked social activist R Viswanath. He said justice should be uniformly accessible for all.

Key reasons for the backlog include the absence of a unit dedicated to monitoring investigation progress, delays in forensic and postmortem reports, and frequent transfers of investigating officers. Without timely chargesheets, courts cannot initiate hearings.

The delays also risk suspects walking free. Under Section 167 of the CrPC, those in custody must be released on bail if chargesheets aren't filed within 60 or 90 days, depending on the offence. "This loophole lets accused misuse bail to tamper with evidence," said advocate R Chandar.

Senior police officials admit that investigating officers—usually from law-and-order units — are overburdened and lack time for proper probe and documentation. Though zones such as North and West Chennai introduced colour-coded alerts to track deadlines and fixed tenures for officers, these are piecemeal solutions.

A comprehensive, state-wide policy is needed to streamline case tracking, officer accountability, and forensic coordination—ensuring the justice system works for all, not just the headline cases, say experts.