The Madras High Court witnessed tense moments on Tuesday when a 15-year-old girl jumped from the first floor of the court premises shortly after a hearing in a custody matter. She sustained injuries and was rushed in the High Court ambulance to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGH) for treatment.
Background of the Case
The girl had been brought from the Andaman Islands by the Neelankarai police in Chennai and produced before a Division Bench of Justices M.S. Ramesh and V. Lakshminarayanan on August 8, 2025. This followed a habeas corpus petition filed by her biological father, who is divorced from her mother.
When the case came up again on Tuesday, the minor expressed her desire to live with her mother in the Andamans. However, after reviewing a confidential report from the court’s mediation centre, the Bench concluded that it would not be conducive or safe for her to return there.
Court Directions
The judges directed the police to admit the girl to the Government Children’s Home for Girls at Kellys, Chennai, and to subsequently take her to the Institute of Mental Health, Kilpauk, for psychiatric evaluation. They further ordered that the evaluation report be submitted in a sealed cover by August 26, 2025.
The Incident
After the hearing, as the police were escorting the girl through the court corridors, she reportedly attempted to escape. She held on to serial lights put up for Independence Day celebrations in an effort to get away, but lost her balance and fell from the first floor.
An eyewitness lawyer stated, “Immediately, she was rushed to the government hospital in the High Court ambulance. It appears to be an accident that occurred during the bid to escape from the police and not a suicide attempt, although only a proper inquiry would reveal the real reason.”
Police are expected to conduct further inquiries into the incident while the court awaits the psychiatric assessment report.
