India, May 11 -- The Supreme Court on May 7 set aside the anticipatory bail granted to a suspended Tamil Nadu police officer accused of sexually harassing a law college student aboard a moving train, holding that the Madras High Court's decision to protect him from arrest merely because departmental action had already been initiated was unsustainable in law.

A bench of justices Pankaj Mithal and SVN Bhatti took strong exception to the reasoning adopted by the high court while granting pre-arrest bail to head constable Sheik Abdulla Mohammed, whose alleged misconduct on the Central-Coimbatore intercity train in December 2025 triggered outrage in the state and renewed concerns over women's safety in public transport.

"The manner in which ...