The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday (May 27, 2026) told the Madras High Court that it has decided to accord top priority to the safety of women and children in the State and that an action plan is being devised to prevent and ensure the swift prosecution of all sexual crimes against them.

Appearing before a summer vacation Bench of Justices G.R. Swaminathan and V. Lakshminarayanan, Advocate General Vijay Narayan said, “The government is giving topmost priority to crimes against women and children. We want to ensure that justice is delivered swiftly.”

The A-G said, there are many factors that delay the completion of trial in sexual offences, though Section 346(1) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) insists upon the completion of trial within two months from the date of the prosecution filing the charge sheet.

“Nevertheless, every effort is being made... In fact, we want to strengthen the police force also, so that these kind of crimes are controlled. A message must go out that anybody who harms a child will not be spared. Therefore, we need some time to come up with an elaborate plan,” he said.

Need 2-3 weeks: A-G

When Justice Swaminathan wanted to know whether the government would be able to submit its action plan by Friday (May 29), the A-G said it would take two to three weeks, as the government was planning several measures, including the establishment of more forensic laboratories.

“Your Lordships can be rest assured that a number of measures are going to be put in place. The discussions have already started, they will take some time to fructify. I don’t know whether I would be able to give it by Friday, I may need at least two to three weeks,” the A-G said.

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The submission was made during the hearing of a public interest litigation petition (PIL) filed by a 26-year-old rape survivor who had approached the court complaining about the trial in her case not having commenced yet, though the police had filed the charge sheet in November 2025.

The petitioner told the court that she was subjected to sexual assault by two policemen in Tiruvannamalai in September 2025 and that the prosecution completed the investigation in November 2025. The accused personnel were also dismissed from service and detained under the Goondas Act.

The accused had thereafter filed discharge petitions before the High Court. The petitions were still pending and the High Court had not granted any interim order in their favour. Yet, the trial court had not framed charges against them and proceeded with the trial, the petitioner complained.

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She also cited a few other sexual offence cases in which the trial had been delayed beyond the statutory time limit of two months from the date of filing the charge sheets. The litigant sought a direction to the State and the High Court Registry to ensure speedy trial in all sexual offence cases.

After hearing the A-G and the petitioner’s counsel, the judges issued an interim direction to the Mahila Court in Tiruvannamalai to complete the trial in the case involving the PIL petitioner on or before July 31, 2026, and kept the main case pending for issuing further directions after the State submits its action plan.