9911796707
TMI Blog2006 (2) TMI 699X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Jaldhir Singh and Baljit Singh), while patrolling near Dhamtan Saheb Bus Stand, received information that one Joginder Singh (son of petitioner) and his associates were conspiring in his house, to apply pressure on some tender-bidders. When the police party proceeded towards Joginder Singh's house, they saw two young men coming from the opposite side, on a motorcycle. On seeing the Police party, the motorcycle suddenly turned back. On suspicion, the Police party gave chase and stopped the motorcycle near a petrol-pump. The ASI asked the motorcyclist and the pillion-rider to identify themselves. The motorcyclist gave his name as Amrik Singh. The pillion-rider gave his name as Joginder Singh, a Palledar at Tohana. When the ASI asked Joginder Singh as to whether he was the same Joginder who had jumped parole in a case, Joginder Singh started running. When the Police party chased him, Joginder Singh turned back, whipped out a pistol and fired at them. Baljit Singh, one of the Constables, was hit and collapsed. In the ensuing confusion, both Amrik Singh and Joginder Singh escaped. The injured Constable succumbed to the bullet injuries. In this connection, FIR No. 112 dated 10.3.1998 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... med them that he was not aware of it, they started beating him. Thereafter, the Police took him, his wife and two minor daughters forcibly to the Police Post, through the bazaar. He was beaten with sticks on the way. When they reached the Police Post, K.P. Singh, Superintendent of Police as also the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Narwana, were present. When ASI Dharam Singh informed them that the persons brought were the father, mother and sisters of Joginder, the S.P. directed that they may be brought to 'correct mental attitude'. The ASI took him inside and beat him for about 10 minutes and brought him back before the SP again. By then, his wife and daughters were made to sit in an uncomfortable posture (as students are made to sit in schools by way of punishment). When the petitioner stated that he was not aware of his son's whereabouts, the S.P. became furious and ordered his men to remove his moustache, whereupon Dharam Singh sat on his chest (with three policemen pressing his hands and feet) and plucked his moustache. Again, they started beating him, searched his pockets and took away ₹ 2,350 which he was carrying. Then the police took him back to his hous ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and financial loss, and return of his licensed gun, gold ornaments and other belongings. He also prayed for a thorough inquiry into the atrocities and torture committed by the Police and imposition of punishment to those who were responsible. 3.4 The letter of the petitioner was registered as a writ petition and Rule was issued on 11.1.1999. On 13.9.2000, this Court appointed Mr. S. Muralidhar, Advocate, as Amicus Curiae, to assist the Court. The alleged Second Round of Harassment : 4. Joginder was arrested in June, 1999 by Punjab Police. Before his arrest, he was allegedly involved in two robberies (registered on 19.3.1999 with PS, City Yamunanagar, and on 21.3.1999 with PS, Indri, Karnal District). On 25.1.2001, when he was being taken to Ferozepur Court from Ambala jail, Joginder escaped from police custody. It is further alleged by the police that on 13.2.2001, Joginder and his associates murdered two residents of Tohana. 4.1 According to Police, on 29.1.2001, the SHO, Police Station, Garhi along with other police officials visited the house of petitioner in search of Joginder who had escaped from custody. Again i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed the CBI to inquire into the matter with reference to the allegations made in the letter as also the subsequent affidavits filed by the petitioner and his relatives and the reply affidavits filed by the respondents. 5.1 The CBI held a preliminary inquiry and submitted the report of the Inquiry Officer (A.K. Ohri, ASP) under cover of its letter dated 22.7.2002. The findings in the said report are arrived at, on the basis of the allegations made in the affidavits filed before this Court, and the statements made by the petitioner, his family members and others (nearly 100 witnesses) before the Inquiry Officer. The CBI has concluded that some of the allegations of the petitioner were substantiated while several others were not substantiated. 5.2 On 16.9.2002, this Court directed that the State Government to take appropriate action on the report of the CBI. In pursuance of it, an FIR was lodged in Garhi Police Station, Jind District, (FIR No. 152 dated 17.10.2002 under Sections 323, 342, 343, 365 and 384 IPC) on the basis of the CBI report, naming the following 10 officers: 1. ASI Dharam Singh (by then S.I.) 2. ASI Satyanar ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on 24.3.1998 in the Punjab Haryana High Court, it is alleged that petitioner and Rattan Singh were kept in illegal confinement from 10.3.1998 to 13.3.1998 and again from 15.3.1998 to 16.3.1998. There is no allegation of any torture at all. They only alleged that they apprehended harassment and torture by Police. The report further shows that petitioner was involved in several criminal cases from 1972 and his son Joginder was involved in more number of criminal cases from the year 1991, as detailed below :- Cases in respect of petitioner : 1. FIR No. 275 dt. 13.10.72 Under Section 61/1/14 Excise Act P.S. Sadar Kaithal. FIR No. 59 dt. 13.2.78 Under Section 379 PC PS Sadar Kaithal. 3. FIR No. 231 dt. 22.7.85 Under Section 25/54/59 Arms Act P.S. Sadar Kaithal. 4. FIR No. 141 dt. 20.7.86 Under Section 61/1/14 Excise Act P.S. Sadar Narwana. 5. FIR No. 142 dt. 25.4.91 Under Section 25/54/59 Arms Act read with Section 5 TADA Act P.S. Sadar Kaithal. 6. FIR No. 147 dt. 25.4.91 Under Section 285/336 I.P.C. P.S. Sadar Kaithal. 7. FIR No. 219 dt. 17.7.91 Under Section ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s and being questioned/beaten up/tortured) are in connection with the effort of Police to find the whereabouts of Joginder Singh, whenever he was involved in a serious incident, that is (a) incident on 10.3.1998 when Joginder was suspected of killing a Police constable, (b) incident on 25.1.2001 when Joginder escaped from Police custody when he was being taken to court, and (c) incident on 13/14.2.2001 when Joginder was suspected of killing two persons at Tohana. ii) Though there is some evidence of illegal detention and beating of petitioner and his relatives, the allegations of custodial torture are exaggerated and to a certain extent false. iii) There is no medical evidence nor any visible scars/ marks/disability resulting from the alleged torture, either in the case of petitioner or his family members/relatives. iv) The complaints of petitioner and his relatives are against different police officers of different police stations (totally unconnected with each other) in regard to incidents at different points of time, in March, 1998, April, 1998, July, 1998, January, 2001, February, 2001 and June, 2001. v) The case of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... iminal complaint. 9.4 In the letter petition, the petitioner has alleged four 'misdeeds' of police on 10.3.1998 : (a) His torture at the police post at the Dhamtan Saheb Police Post by Dharam Singh, ASI at the instance of Superintendent of Police and DSP, (b) Mistreatment of wife and daughters of the petitioner at the Dhamtan Saheb Police Post, (c) ₹ 2,350/- being taken from his pocket by ASI Dharam Singh, and (d) Licensed gun, cartridges, arms licence and gold ornaments being illegally taken by ASI Dharam Singh on 10.3.1998. The CBI report finds that none of these four allegations is substantiated. 9.5 In the letter petition, the petitioner alleged that he had told police that he was not on good terms with his son Joginder Singh, that he had already disowned him and the family was having no connection with Joginder. He even published a notice in 'Dainik Tribune' in August, 1998 stating that he has no connection with his son Joginder. In his affidavit dated 31.8.2001 (filed in this case on 1.10.2001), petitioner reiterates that he has disowned his son Joginder and alleges that he did not have any contact with him; and that in sp ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ether, in addition to directing CBI inquiry and prosecution of the officers concerned, on the facts and circumstances of this case, compensation should be awarded to petitioner and his family members, as a public law remedy for the violation of their fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Constitution. Compensation as a public law remedy: 12. Though illegal detention and custodial torture were recognized as violations of the fundamental rights of life and liberty guaranteed under Article 21, to begin with, only the following reliefs were being granted in writ petitions under Article 32 or 226: a) direction to set at liberty the person detained, if the complaint was one of illegal detention. b) direction to the concerned Government to hold an inquiry and take action against the officers responsible for the violation. c) If the enquiry or action taken by the concerned department was found to be not satisfactory, to direct an inquiry by an independent agency, usually the Central Bureau of Investigation. Award of compensation as a public law remedy for violation of the fundamental righ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ch the court under Article 32 and ask for a writ striking down the continuance of such action, but where the action taken by the State has already resulted in breach of the fundamental right under Article 21 by deprivation of some limb of the petitioner, would the petitioner have no remedy under Article 32 for breach of the fundamental right guaranteed to him ? Would the court permit itself to become helpless spectator of the violation of the fundamental right of the petitioner by the State and tell the petitioner that though the Constitution has guaranteed the fundamental right to him and has also given him the fundamental right of moving the court for enforcement of his fundamental right, the court cannot give him any relief. Answering the said questions, it was held that when a court trying the writ petition proceeds to inquire into the violation of any right to life or personal liberty, while in police custody, it does so, not for the purpose of adjudicating upon the guilt of any particular officer with a view to punishing him but for the purpose of deciding whether the fundamental right of the petitioners under Article 21 has been violated and the State is lia ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f instrumentalities which act in the name of public interest and which present for their protection the powers of the State as a shield. If civilisation is not to perish in this country as it has perished in some others too well-known to suffer mention, it is necessary to educate ourselves into accepting that, respect for the rights of individuals is the true bastion of democracy. Therefore, the State must repair the damage done by its officers to the petitioner's rights. It may have recourse against those officers. Rudul Sah was followed in Bhim Singh v. State of J K 1986CriLJ192 and Peoples' Union for Democratic Rights v. Police Commissioner, Delhi Police Headquarters (1989)4SCC730. 15. The law was crystallized in Nilabati Behera v. State of Orissa 1993CriLJ2899. In that case, the deceased was arrested by the police, handcuffed and kept in a police custody. The next day, his dead-body was found on a railway track. This Court awarded compensation to the mother of the deceased. J.S. Verma J., (as he then was) spelt out the following principles :- Award of compensation in a proceeding under Article 32 by this Court or by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... etary compensation, as exemplary damages, in proceedings under Article 32 by the Supreme Court or under Article 226 by the High Courts, for established infringement of the indefeasible right guaranteed under Article 21 is a remedy available in public law and is based on the strict liability for contravention of the guaranteed basic and indefeasible rights of the citizen. The purpose of public law is not only to civilize public power but also to assure the citizen that they live under a legal system which aims to protect their interests and preserve their rights. Therefore, when the court moulds the relief by granting 'compensation' in proceedings under Article 32 or 226 seeking enforcement or protection of fundamental rights, it does so under the public law by way of penalizing the wrongdoer and fixing the liability for the public wrong on the State which has failed in its public duty to protect the fundamental rights of the citizen. The payment of compensation in such cases is not to be understood, as it is generally understood in a civil action for damages under the private law but in the broader sense of providing relief by an order of making 'monetary amends' un ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... permit use of third degree methods or torture of accused in custody during interrogation and investigation with a view to solve the crime. End cannot justify the means. The interrogation and investigation into a crime should be in true sense purposeful to make the investigation effective. By torturing a person and using third degree methods, the police would be accomplishing behind the closed doors what the demands of our legal order forbid. No society can permit it. 17. It is thus now well settled that award of compensation against the State is an appropriate and effective remedy for redress of an established infringement of a fundamental right under Article 21, by a public servant. The quantum of compensation will, however, depend upon the facts and circumstances of each case. Award of such compensation (by way of public law remedy) will not come in the way of the aggrieved person claiming additional compensation in a civil court, in enforcement of the private law remedy in tort, nor come in the way of the criminal court ordering compensation under Section 357 of Code of Civil Procedure. 18. This takes us to the next q ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... (emphasis supplied) In Nilabati Behera (supra), this Court put in a word of caution thus: Of course, relief in exercise of the power under Article 32 or 226 would be granted only (when) it is established that there has been an infringement of the fundamental rights of the citizen and no other form of appropriate redressal by the court in the facts and circumstances of the case, is possible.... Law is in the process of development and the process necessitates developing separate public law procedures as also public law principles. It may be necessary to identify the situations to which separate proceedings and principles apply and the courts have to act firmly but with certain amount of circumspection and self-restraint, lest proceedings under Article 32 or 226 are misused as a disguised substitute for civil action in private law. (emphasis supplied) In D. K. Basu (supra), this Court repeatedly stressed that compensation can be awarded only for redressal of an established violation of Article 21. This Court also drew attention to the following aspect: There is one other aspect also which needs our ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... BI and our own independent appraisal of the evidence recorded by the CBI. we have come to the conclusion that Shri Dhananjay Sharma and Sushil Kumar had been illegally detained by respondents 3 to 5 from the afternoon of 15.1.94 to 17.1.94, the State must be held responsible for the unlawful acts of its officers and it must repair the damage done to the citizens by its officers for violating their indivisible fundamental right of personal liberty without any authority of law in an absolutely high-handed manner. We would have been, therefore, inclined to direct the State Government of Haryana to compensate Dhananjay Sharma and Sushil Kumar but since Sushil Kumar has indulged in false-hood in this Court and Shri Dhananjay Sharma, has also exaggerated the incident by stating that on 15.1.94 when he was way laid along with Sushil Kumar and Shri S.C. Puri, Advocate, two employees of respondents 6 and 7 were also present with the police party, which version has not been found to be correct by the CBI, they both have disentitled themselves from receiving any compensation, as monetary amends for the wrong done by respondents 3 to 5, in detaining them. We, therefore do not direct the payme ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r, be understood as holding that harassment and custodial violence is not serious or worthy of consideration, where there is no medical report or visible marks or independent evidence. We are conscious of the fact that harassment or custodial violence cannot always be supported by a medical report or independent evidence or proved by marks or scars. Every illegal detention irrespective of its duration, and every custodial violence, irrespective of its degree or magnitude, is outright condemnable and per se actionable. Remedy for such violation is available in civil law and criminal law. The public law remedy is additionally available where the conditions mentioned in the earlier para are satisfied. We may also note that this Court has softened the degree of proof required in criminal prosecution relating to such matters. In State of MP v. Shyamsunder Trivedi (1995) 4 SCC 262 , reiterated in ABDUL GAFAR KHAN and MUNSHI SINGH GAUTAM (supra),this Court observed :- Rarely in cases of police torture or custodial death, direct ocular evidence of the complicity of the police personnel would be available.... Bound as they are by the ties of brotherhood, it is not unknown ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s come for an attitudinal change not only in the minds of the police, but also on the part of the public. Difficulties in criminal investigation and the time required for such investigation should be recognized, and police should be allowed to function methodically without interferences or unnecessary pressures. If police are to perform better, the public should support them, government should strengthen and equip them, and men in power should not interfere or belittle them. The three wings of the Government should encourage, insist and ensure thorough scientific investigation under proper legal procedures, followed by prompt and efficient prosecution. Be that as it may. 24. Custodial violence requires to be tackled from two ends, that is, by taking measures that are remedial and preventive. Award of compensation is one of the remedial measures after the event. Effort should be made to remove the very causes, which lead to custodial violence, so as to prevent such occurrences . Following steps, if taken, may prove to be effective preventive measures: a) Police training should be re-oriented, to bring in a change in the mindset and attitude of the Polic ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
