# State of Himachal Pradesh vs Rampur, village Gharat Nala Police Head Constable and others

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## Report card

By judgment dated 1 March 1979 in Criminal Appeal No. 11 of 1971, the High Court of Himachal Pradesh (Coram: D.B. Lal, T.R. Handa, JJ.) recorded the conviction of 2 police personnel, namely: Prem Chand (Head Constable); Narsingh Dutt (Constable).

- Register number: HP 03 CW 0002
- Case reference: Criminal Appeal No. 11 of 1971 / (1980) ShimLC 73
- Court and date: High Court of Himachal Pradesh (Coram: D.B. Lal, T.R. Handa, JJ.), 1 March 1979
- Officer(s) at the material time: Prem Chand (Head Constable); Narsingh Dutt (Constable)
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 330 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 348 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
- Finding of the Court (extract): “Prem Chand, Head Constable, and Narsingh Dutt, Constable, the two accused, have gone beyond their powers and have committed the offences under Sections 330 and 348 of the I.P. Code.” (at para 17)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Conviction entered by High Court. Sentence: imprisonment; maximum substantive term of 2 years.
- Present status of the proceedings: No further proceedings are recorded in the cited sources; the judgment is the concluded position shown.
- Source orders: [Judgment / order (primary source)](https://www.courtkutchehry.com/judgements/242044/state-of-himachal-pradesh-vs-shri-ranjit-singh-and-others/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1979-0002)

**Record:** CW-1979-0002 (compiler id CWC-0055); case CHANDI-001
**Title:** State of Himachal Pradesh vs Rampur, village Gharat Nala Police Head Constable and others
**Court:** High Court of Himachal Pradesh; judges: D.B. Lal; T.R. Handa
**Case number / citation:** Criminal Appeal No. 11 of 1971 / (1980) ShimLC 73
**Judgment:** 1979-03-01 (1979, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1969-06-20 (1969)
**Place:** Shimla, Himachal Pradesh (district at time: Mahasu); city town: Rampur, village Gharat Nala; police station or unit: Rampur police party (SHO Ranjit Singh); force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial torture
**Outcome:** Conviction entered by High Court (conviction_by_hc)
**Sections:** IPC 330; IPC 348
**Officers (gated display forms):** Prem Chand (Head Constable); Narsingh Dutt (Constable) (2 in record)
**Victims:** Rampur, village Gharat Nala man; Rampur, village Gharat Nala man (2 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** imprisonment; max 2 yrs
**Sentence type:** imprisonment (imprisonment)

The High Court of Himachal Pradesh (Division Bench) allowed the State appeal against the acquittal of seven Rampur policemen by the Assistant Sessions Judge, Mahasu. On the night of June 20-21, 1969, a police party led by SHO detained a Rampur, village Gharat Nala man and a Rampur, village Gharat Nala man at a shop in village Gharat Nala while investigating a theft, beating them to extort confessions; a Rampur, village Gharat Nala man died the next morning at Bathara. Holding that Head Constable Prem Chand and Constable Narsingh Dutt had voluntarily caused hurt to extort a confession and wrongfully confined a Rampur, village Gharat Nala man overnight, the Court convicted both under Sections 330 and 348 IPC, sentencing each to two years rigorous imprisonment under Section 330 and one year under Section 348 to run concurrently, and directed them to surrender forthwith, while dismissing the appeal against the remaining five accused.

> Prem Chand, Head Constable, and Narsingh Dutt, Constable, the two accused, have gone beyond their powers and have committed the offences under Sections 330 and 348 of the I.P. Code.

**Sources (2):** [courtkutchehry.com](https://www.courtkutchehry.com/judgements/242044/state-of-himachal-pradesh-vs-shri-ranjit-singh-and-others/); [the-laws.com](https://www.the-laws.com/encyclopedia/browse/case?caseId=709791620000&title=state-of-himachal-pradesh-vs-ranjit-singh)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** brutality
**admin subcategory:** custodial_torture
**allegations:** {'category': 'Custodial torture', 'primary': True, 'position': 'Material fact supported', 'position_explainer': 'Reliable material supports a specifically documented fact relevant to that allegation, not necessarily the full allegation, causation, intent, unlawfulness, or responsibility.', 'official_finding_relation': 'supports allegation'}
**anonymised:** False
**court quote para:** 17
**display title redacted:** State of Himachal Pradesh vs Rampur, village Gharat Nala Police Head Constable and others
**followup history:** {'date': '2026-09-19', 'scope': 'Round-8 full re-verification: published record re-checked against the judgment text (outcome, officers, quote, key facts) plus methodology-compliance pass', 'method': 'skills-guided adversarial re-verification of the published record against the judgment text (reverify/t1-*/adversarial-8.jsonl)', 'result': 'holds', 'corrections_applied': \['court_quote_para'\]}
**followup status:** checked
**institutional response:** {'date': '1979-03-01', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'High Court of Himachal Pradesh', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The High Court of Himachal Pradesh entered convictions against police personnel in this judgment.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation', 'source': '(1980) ShimLC 73', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://www.courtkutchehry.com/judgements/242044/state-of-himachal-pradesh-vs-shri-ranjit-singh-and-others/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.the-laws.com/encyclopedia/browse/case?caseId=709791620000&title=state-of-himachal-pradesh-vs-ranjit-singh', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** custodial torture
**tier:** Tier A — Externally reported or officially recorded
**tier badge:** Externally reported
**tier history:** Tier A — Externally reported or officially recorded
**verdict:** accept
**verdict note:** HP HC set aside acquittal and convicted Head Constable Prem Chand and Constable Narsingh Dutt under IPC 330/348 for custodial torture of a Rampur, village Gharat Nala man
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Conviction entered by High Court.

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