SEVERINA RIBEIRO ALIAS CARDINHO Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WHILE deciding First Appeal No. 181 of 1976 in case of (Union of India and another v. Hardeo Dutta Tirtharam and others) A. I. R. 1986 Bombay 350 this Court was at pains to point out that gone are days when the State can contend that "the King can do no wrong" in the matter of tortious acts of their servants. We are sorry that we have to hear the burden of the same song once again in this writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution.

(2.) THE relevant facts giving rise to this petition are as under: one Anthony Bras Cardinho was working as a Storekeeper in the Mental Hospital, Panjim. He had put in 13 years of service with the State Government out of which 9 years as a Storekeeper. On October 6, 1979 he was arrested by the Panjim Town Police on the allegations that he had misappropriated some hospital utensils and plastic-ware worth about Rs. 1500/ -. It is contended by the petitioners who are the wife and two sons of the said-Anthony Bras Cardinho that after his arrest he was handcuffed and dragged through the streets and was ruthlessly beaten by the Police and on hearing the news of his arrest petitioner No. 1 rushed to Panjim Police Station when she had noticed some blood stains on the shirt of her husband. She was informed by the Police that her husband was granted police custody till October 12, 1979. On October 9, 1979 petitioner No. 1 accompanied by her mother-in-law again went to the Panjim Police Station to see her husband but they were rudely chased away by the Police and were not permitted to see the said Anthony. Petitioner No. 1 entertained a feeling that her husband was in a serious condition on account of atrocities, committed on him by the Police. The record shows that on October 9, 1979 the Police made an application before the learned Judicial Magistrate (F. C), Panjim that the detention of the said Anthony was no more required in the Police Lock-up and that he should be transferred to judicial custody. It further appears that on October 9, 1979 Anthony Cardinho were ordered to be transferred to judicial custody and was as such taken in judicial custody on October 10, 1979 where he died at about 10. 00 a. m.

(3.) THEREAFTER an inquest was conducted on the dead body of the said Anthony at the premises of the Goa Medical College, Panjim on October 10, 1979 but since the petitioners and some members of the public raised doubts about the cause of death of the said Anthony, an inquest was again conducted on the same day, late in the evening, when it was noticed that there were 20 external injuries on the body of the deceased. Then a post mortem examination was held on the dead body of Anthony again at the Goa Medical College on October 10, 1979 itself which revealed that he had suffered 20 injuries which were ante mortem. Post mortem report showed that the death was due to shock as a result of multiple internal and external injuries.