Tamil Nadu prisons chief Sandeep Rai Rathore transferred after Theni jailbreak

The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday, October 29, transferred Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services Sandeep Rai Rathore, days after 17 undertrial prisoners escaped from the Thekkampatti sub-jail in Theni district. All the escapees were subsequently recaptured, ending the search but leaving questions over the security failures that allowed them to flee.

Rathore has been posted as Director General of Police and Chief Vigilance Officer at TANGEDCO in Chennai, according to a Press Trust of India report. K. Shankar, who was serving as Additional Director General of Police in the Enforcement Bureau CID, has been appointed to lead Prisons and Correctional Services in his place.

The prisoners escaped on the night of October 26 from the jail near Andipatti. According to police accounts cited in news reports, inmates allegedly staged a medical emergency, claiming that a prisoner was suffering an epileptic seizure, before attacking staff who responded and making their way out of the facility.

The escape prompted an extensive search involving special police teams and drones deployed over forested areas in Theni district. Police also circulated photographs and details of the fugitives to help locate them. All 17 were back in custody by Wednesday, according to the subsequent PTI report on the leadership change.

Nine prison personnel were suspended following the incident, The Times of India reported. Rathore had described the escape as a failure involving human error and a breach of security procedures. His account focused on staff responding to the purported medical emergency, which allegedly gave the prisoners an opportunity to overpower guards and escape.

The incident also brought attention to how inmates were housed and how prison staff should respond when a medical alarm coincides with a security threat. The Indian Express reported that Rathore said five prisoners implicated in the same case registered at Vikramangalam police station had been placed in the same ward. The immediate concern extended beyond recapturing the escapees to preventing a similar breach.

Following the jailbreak, the prison department issued directions allowing personnel to use firearms when necessary to prevent escapes, PTI reported. The Indian Express separately reported that Rathore had referred to watchtower personnel being authorised to open fire when under attack or during a jailbreak. These directions formed part of the department’s response to the security lapse.

Authorities have also initiated arrangements to move the recaptured prisoners to higher-security correctional facilities, according to PTI. Officials identified central prisons in Salem, Vellore, Cuddalore and Puzhal as destinations, subject to completion of legal formalities. Shankar’s appointment places the next stage of the department’s response under new leadership, with those transfers still to be completed.