SOUBHAGYA Vs. CHIEF SECRETARY STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a pathetic case of a young widow aged about 22 years has filed this writ petition seeking for issuance of a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to pay compensation of Rs. 5 lakhs together with interest at 18% p. a. from the date of custodial death of Sri Nanjunda the husband of the petitioner and further sought for direction to the State Govt. to give a suitable job to the petitioner for having lost her husband Sri Nanjunda in the custodial death case at her young age. Further the petitioner has sought for issuance of an appropriate direction to the first and second respondents to take appropriate action against the erred police personnel and officers who are responsible for causing custodial death of her husband late Nanjunda at Mahalakshmi Layout Police Station, Bangalore (hereinafter referred to Police Station in short) and further direct them to hold an enquiry against all the Police Personnel who have been arrayed as accused persons in the Criminal Case C. C. No. 16457/1998 before the Addl. CMM Court Bangalore by an independent agency and prosecute them, urging various facts and legal contentions.

(2.) THE petitioner is a legally wedded wife of late Nanjunda. Out of their lawful wedlock, she got one male child who was aged 4 years at the time of filing this writ petition. It is stated that, the petitioner and her late husband were leading a happy marital life. Petitioner's late husband was working as a weaver in a Power Loom Factory at Bangalore, he was earning Rs. 1,500/- to Rs. 2,000/- p. m. and was maintaining his family including his aged mother Smt. Gangamma and his father Sri N. Rudrappa.

(3.) IT is alleged by the petitioner that, on 13-2-1993 at about 8 p. m. , the 5th respondent Sri Gopal, Sub-Inspector of Police (Crime), G. R. Hanumaiah, Head Constable (Metal No. 2050) and Sri P. Ravikumar S/o Sri Purushotham, of the above said police station came to the house of the petitioner and forcibly took the husband of the petitioner Sri Nanjunda to the Police Station without assigning any reason whatsoever and kept him under illegal custody without registering a case against him. It is her further case that the petitioner was visiting the Police Station every day eversince from the date of her late husband was illegally arrested and she has been making repeated requests to the concerned Police Personnel of the Police Station to release her husband from illegal custody. The Police personnel by one way or the other were demanding money from her for his release without registering a case and he was subjected to torture by using third degree methods and caused external injuries on his vital parts and kept him in the police custody without producing him before the Court.