Institute of Legal and Management Studies

An intervention application has been filed in the Supreme Court by the wife of slain BSP leader and prominent Dalit activist Armstrong, supporting the demand for a CBI investigation into his murder.

Porkodi, Armstrong's wife, filed the intervention application in the Special Leave Petition filed by the State of Tamil Nadu against the Madras High Court's order which quashed the chargesheet filed by the State Police in the murder case and transferred the investigation to the CBI. Though the Supreme Court, on October 10, stayed the High Court's order quashing the chargesheet, it did not interdict the CBI investigation.

Stating that the case has a bearing on the "national conscience", Porkodi submitted that a CBI investigation is necessary under the monitoring of a Supervisory Committee headed by a former Supreme Court Judge, as was done in the Karur stampede case.

She has also asked for witness protection under the Witness Protection Scheme, 2018.

"Formation of supervisory committee is needed due to the fact that various important facts were deliberately omitted in the charge-sheet which have clear nexus with the motive and intent with which this dastardly crime has happened. Various facts which goes to the root of the matter and requires a fair relook in the nature of de-novo investigation since the earlier investigation has been prima facie found deficient and impartial by the High Court," she stated in the application.

On September 24, Justice P Velmurugan of the High Court passed the order in a petition filed by Armstrong's brother, Keynos, who had sought a CBI probe, alleging that there were major shortcomings in the investigation being carried out by the state police. The High Court held that there were procedural lapses in the investigation and material contradictions in the chargesheet.

Porkodi, in her intervention application, stated that she had also filed a separate petition in the Madras High Court questioning the State Police investigation. She points out that since the matter is now before the Supreme Court, the High Court was unlikely to pass orders in her petition.

Armstrong was hacked to death on July 5, 2024, outside his residence in Perambur, Chennai, by a group of armed assailants.

The intervention application has been filed through AoR Rahul Shyam Bhandari.

Case Details : The Commissioner of Police v. K. Immanuvel @ Keynos Armstrong and Another | SLP(Crl) No. 15897/2025