New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday, September 4, initiated a suo motu public interest litigation (PIL) titled ‘Lack of Functional CCTVs in Police Stations’ after taking cognisance of a news report highlighting 11 custodial deaths over the past seven to eight months in 2025.
The Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta acted on a Dainik Bhaskar report, which raised concerns about the continued absence of working surveillance systems in police stations despite binding court directions.
"Based on Dainik Bhaskar, we are directing for a suo motu public interest litigation titled ‘lack of functional CCTVs in police stations’, as it has been reported that there are 11 deaths in last 7-8 months in year 2025 in police custody," the court said in its order, as quoted by Bar and Bench.
Paramvir Singh Saini vs Baljit Singh
The issue of custodial surveillance has been under continuous judicial scrutiny since the Supreme Court’s 2020 ruling in the Paramvir Singh Saini vs Baljit Singh case. That landmark judgment mandated installation of CCTV cameras with night vision and audio recording in every police station and in interrogation offices of central agencies such as the CBI, NIA, ED, and NCB.
Despite this, compliance has remained patchy. Affidavits filed by states have revealed glaring inconsistencies, from lack of camera installations to non-functional systems and missing oversight committees. The top court had previously said that only a handful of states and Union Territories, including Goa, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Ladakh, had complied.
Recurring Excuses and Custodial Deaths Persist
The court has repeatedly warned that custodial deaths and serious injuries must be met with immediate safeguarding of CCTV footage. Victims are entitled to access the recordings, especially in cases of alleged human rights violations. Yet, authorities often cite missing or malfunctioning footage.
As per NCRB data, India recorded an average of 92 custodial deaths annually between 2000 and 2022. The new case adds to the Supreme Court’s continuing oversight of the Saini matter, where senior advocate Siddharth Dave is assisting as amicus curiae.
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