The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Friday sought the report of the Judicial Magistrate inquiry into the death of N. Arunachalam of Thoothukudi who was arrested for illegally selling liquor bottles. The family has alleged custodial torture.A Division Bench of Justices C.V. Karthikeyan and R. Sakthivel was hearing a public interest litigation petition filed by G. Theeran Thirumurugan of Madurai. The petitioner sought a CBI probe into the incident.Mr. Thirumurugan said police arrested Arunachalam who was working as a contract labourer in a TASMAC shop. After he was arrested, the police beat him up brutally. Due to the custodial torture he sustained injuries and was admitted to the hospital.During the treatment, a video circulated on social media showed Arunachalam mentioning the names of police personnel who had allegedly assaulted him, he said.The petitioner said Arunachalam was a victim of custodial torture. He said a CBI probe will reveal the truth about the horrific crime committed by the police personnel. The court posted the matter for hearing to September 2.Following the incident, the police had said while Arunachalam was conversing normally with the other inmates, he collapsed in the lock-up. A short video clip showing him collapsing inside the lock up was also released. Published - August 21, 2026 08:45 pm IST