PRATIBHA MANOJ VERMA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioners are wife, children and parents of deceased Manoj Chhotelal Verma, who have approached this Court by invoking its extra-ordinary jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution of India, claiming compensation in the sum of Rs. 9,50,000/- alongwith costs of Rs. 50,000/- from the respondent/state and its officials for the custodial death of Manoj Verma who died while he was in custody of Police Station, Ganeshpeth on being arrested for having committed offence punishable under Sections 294 and 506-B of the Indian Penal Code, registered vide Crime No. 3229/2003.

(2.) The indisputed facts can be summed up from the pleadings of the parties and as admitted and presented in the submissions made on behalf of respondent No. 1 and are reproduced as under : That on28-10-2003 at about18. 00 hours the Control Room gave information to the Police Station, Ganeshpeth that police staff is required at Vajpeyi Mandir at Bajeriya area as some quarrel is going on. On receiving this information from the Control Room the day officer i. e. Respondent No. 4 Shri. Saraf alongwith Police Constable Jiralal (Respondent No. 6) and Police Constable Rajendra (Respondent No. 5) went on the spot in the Police Jeep. THEy apprehended Manoj Verma and he was beaten by fists blows and stick by the said Police Officers and brought him in the Police Jeep to Police Station, Ganeshpeth and produced the apprehended accused Manoj Verma before the Police Inspector Mr. Vasant Ade (Respondent No. 3 ). It is submitted that the said entry is appearing in the Station Diary at Sr. No. 49 at about19. 00 hrs. It is submitted that the Respondent No. 3 has interrogated the accused Manoj Verma and gave further investigation to Respondent No.4. THE day Officer P. S. I. Arvind Saraf-Respondent No. 4 sent the accused Manoj Verma for the Medical examination alongwith Respondent No. 5 Rajendra Boldhan and another Police Constable Subhash B. No. 712 in Government Jeep. THE deceased Manoj Verma was taken to Government Medical College, Nagpur. THE Medical Officer Dr. P. M. Revale examined Manoj Verma at19. 20 hrs. and has given opinion "no complaints, No external injuries seen at present. ".

(3.) It is submitted that as per the Postmortem Report the Medical Officer found the following injuries on the body of Manoj Verma. EXTERNAL INJURIEs 1. Contusion present over medical aspect of left knee and upper third leg, obligue, 15 cm x 2 cm cut Section blood & blood clots + bright red in colour 21 linear abrasion4 cm below left knee 2" in no.1 cm. Apart oblique of size 1. 5 cm x 0. 25 cm and 0. 5 cm x 0. 25 cm reddish, 3) Abrasion over back left side 2 cm x 1 cm reddish, 4) Linear abrassion over middle third of left shin of tibia oblique 1. 5 cm x 0. 5 cm with brown scab. INTERNAL INJURIEs "underseal haematoma + over vertex partietal right side 3 cm x 3 cm Bright red" extradural haemorrhage present in both parietal region and occipital region as thin film of blood and blood clot 30 cc blood clots in occipital region, brain congested. The reason for death recorded is "intracranial hemorrhage due to head injury". "