Are all police stations in Tamil Nadu retaining CCTV footage for 18 months? Madras High Court asks DGP
Justice V. Lakshminarayanan says that retaining the footage even for a minute less than 18 months would amount to a breach of the orders passed by the Supreme Court and the High Court
- ✓Lakshminarayanan says that retaining the footage even for a minute less than 18 months would amount to a breach of the orders passed by the Supreme Court and the High Court
- ✓Primary Authority: Official communique verified from The Hindu National.
- ✓Civic Domain: Categorized under india public notices.
The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police to clarify whether the CCTV footage of cameras installed inside police stations is being retained for a period of 18 months, and asked why the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (V&AC) office in Coimbatore retains the footage only for 15 days.
Justice V. Lakshminarayanan wanted the DGP to submit a report in this regard by September 10, 2026, and underlined that retaining the footage even for a minute less than 18 months would amount to a breach of the orders passed by the Supreme Court as well as a Division Bench of the High Court.
The direction was issued after senior counsel R. Shunmugasundaram, assisted by advocate Shakeena Abdul Gafoor, brought to the notice of the court that an Additional Superintendent of Police, V&AC, Coimbatore, had admitted on affidavit that a digital video recorder (DVR) in the office retains footage only for 15 days.
The senior counsel relied upon orders passed by the Supreme Court in Paramvir Singh Saini versus Baljit Singh in 2021 and also a 2024 order of a Division Bench of the High Court to contend that the then DGPs had assured both courts to preserve CCTV footage of police stations for 18 months.
The submissions were made during the hearing of a petition filed by A. Saravanakumar, Sub Inspector of Police, Civil Supplies-CID, Salem, who had been accused of demanding a bribe from a person booked for smuggling 1,250 kg of rice, meant for the Public Distribution System (PDS), in a private van.
The petitioner had sought a direction to secure and preserve the CCTV footage from inside the V&AC office in Coimbatore from September 15, 2025, to October 15, 2025, to prove that a false complaint of corruption had been lodged against him and to disprove the prosecution’s charges.
However, the V&AC reported to the court that it would not be possible to secure and provide data for the period mentioned by the petitioner as the DVR in the Coimbatore office could retain the CCTV footage only for a period of 15 days.
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| Issuing Authority | The Hindu National |
|---|---|
| Topic Category | INDIA |
| Jurisdiction | All India / National |
| Publication Date | 4 September 2026 |