Chennai,  The Thoothukudi police have commenced an investigation against four women constables over the alleged assault of a woman suspect.

The four women cops are kept under suspension and Thoothukudi district superintendent of Police Balaji Saravanan told IANS that investigation against them is underway.

Three women constables and a woman Sub-Inspector of Muthiahpuram police station were placed under suspension on Wednesday after a woman, Sumathi (40), complained that she was taken into custody and brutally assaulted. The woman is undergoing treatment in Thoothukudi medical college after doctors found that she had internal injuries. The women constables who are placed under suspension are -- Mercina, Kalpana and Uma Maheswari -- while Muthumalai is a Sub-Inspector. Earlier, there were reports that the station has turned notorious for assaulting suspects who are under custody.

According to police, a person, Prabakaran lodged a complaint on May 7 that his neighbour's 10 sovereigns of gold was missing from from his house on May 4 and that he suspected Sumathi on this.

Based on the complaint, Muthaipauram police took the woman into custody. The woman alleged that the cops assaulted her brutally and that she lost her consciousness in the torture.

Tamil Nadu police is on backfoot following two recent back-to-back lockup deaths. A Dalit called Vignesh had died in police custody at the Secretariat Colony police station on April 19 after he was taken into custody on April 18 night along with a friend Suresh. Autopsy report revealed that Vignesh had 13 injury marks, including a broken bone.

In another incident, police at Tiruvannamalai arrested Thangamani (42) on charges of illicit brewing of liquor on April 25 and he died in Sub Jail on April 27 due to seizures. The lockup deaths had caused major embarrassment to the Stalin government and the suspension of the four women cops immediately after the women suspect had complained that she was tortured in police custody is to prevent further embarrassment to the force.