The Kerala High Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take over the investigation into the unnatural deaths of 23 children in the Palakkad district over 13 years.
Central Bureau of Investigation.
The Kerala High Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take over the investigation into the unnatural deaths of 23 children in the Palakkad district over 13 years.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V M on Thursday passed the order while hearing a public interest litigation, concerning investigations into cases involving the unnatural deaths of children in the Palakkad district.
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The PIL highlighted systemic lapses and suspicious deaths of children from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds spanning over 13 years – from 2010 to 2023.
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The court observed that despite a previous directive issued on February 19, 2026, requesting status updates on these child deaths, the CBI had delayed filing its formal report
However, after examining the Crime Branch’s status report regarding one of the cases registered in Kollengode Police Station, the court found sufficient grounds to transfer the investigation to the CBI.
“Considering the nature of the status report, which discloses various irregularities in the investigation, we direct the Crime Branch to hand over Crime No. 21/2010 of Kollengode Police Station to the CBI, which shall take over the matter from the Crime Branch. All records connected thereto, including the post-mortem report, shall be made available to the CBI by the investigating agency.” the court said.
The bench directed that all records connected with the case, including the post-mortem report, be handed over to the CBI.
The CBI is now required to respond to the court regarding all 23 deaths mentioned in the factual memorandum certified by Palakkad District Police Chief Ajith Kumar IPS. The agency is permitted to pull files directly from State Police Headquarters and local Palakkad police authorities to build its case.
The bench previously noted that underlying social factors and systemic vulnerabilities may have driven these unnatural deaths (originally dismissed by local police as simple suicides).
The court has earlier, impleaded the Member Secretary, Kerala State Legal Services Authority (KeLSA) as an additional party respondent to the case, noting that certain social factors might have resulted in the unnatural death of the children.
The court has noted a KeLSA affidavit outlining new prevention and awareness measures to boost child protection across Kerala.
The proposed initiatives include legal awareness programmes on child rights and protection laws, coordination with child welfare and law enforcement agencies, strengthening the role of para-legal volunteers, outreach activities in schools and vulnerable communities, counselling and sensitisation programmes, promotion of child helplines, and community-based child protection efforts.
The court directed all District Legal Services Authorities and Taluk Legal Services Committees to implement these measures, mandating the submission of monthly compliance reports to the KeLSA Chairman. Additionally, the Member Secretary of KeLSA was instructed to oversee and ensure strict adherence to these directives.
The matter is posted to August 6 for further consideration.
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