CHENNAI: Yet another child rape case, fifth in the series, has been registered against Gem Granite owner R Veeramani, 84, based on a complaint filed by a Chennai resident. The special investigation team (SIT) probing the cases against Veeramani registered the latest case on Friday.Another woman, who hails from Tiruvannamalai, has also approached SIT alleging that Veeramani had sexually harassed her after promising her a job when she came to Chennai as a child. SIT was verifying the complaint.Veeramani, who was arrested on Aug 29 along with two of his associates — Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan — after a video of a child rape came to light, has since been detained under the Goondas Act. The case triggered public and political outcry after it came to light that police in Feb 2026 filed a closure report in the special court for Pocso Act cases saying “further action dropped.” The court, in Aug 2026, however, disallowed the closure and ordered further inquiry, leading to four arrests and five cases of child rape so far.The fifth case was registered after SIT received the complaint on its dedicated WhatsApp number, 9345319676. Police said complaints from affected women and their relatives continued to be received. Some of the women who had approached the authorities were now married and living with their families. Police said five more “actionable pieces of information” had been received through the number and that they were being verified.
