# Ladowal Man vs State of Punjab and Others

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1994-0004](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1994-0004)

## Report card

By judgment dated 3 May 1994, the Punjab and Haryana High Court (Coram: S. P. Kurdukar, H. S. Bedi, JJ.) returned findings adverse to 7 police personnel, namely: Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable (Munshi), Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Punjab Home Guard, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Sub-Inspector, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 1,50,000).

- Register number: PB 10 CW 0002
- Case reference: 1996 ACJ 193; (1995) 109 PLR 117
- Court and date: Punjab and Haryana High Court (Coram: S. P. Kurdukar, H. S. Bedi, JJ.), 3 May 1994
- Officer(s) at the material time: Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable (Munshi), Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Punjab Home Guard, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Sub-Inspector, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Not stated in the cited sources
- Finding of the Court (extract): “We accordingly conclude that the death of a Ladowal man is a custodial death of which the respondents could not give satisfactory explanation.”
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 1,50,000).
- 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://indiankanoon.org/doc/1814190/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1994-0004)

**Record:** CW-1994-0004 (compiler id CWC-0711); case GAP8-006
**Title:** Ladowal Man vs State of Punjab and Others
**Court:** Punjab and Haryana High Court; judges: S. P. Kurdukar; H. S. Bedi
**Case number / citation:** 1996 ACJ 193; (1995) 109 PLR 117
**Judgment:** 1994-05-03 (1994, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1991-08-17 (1991)
**Place:** Ludhiana, Punjab; city town: Ladowal; police station or unit: Police Chowki Ladowal; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Officers (gated display forms):** Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable (Munshi), Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Punjab Home Guard, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Head Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Constable, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana; Sub-Inspector, Police Chowki Ladowal, Ludhiana (7 in record)
**Victims:** Ladowal man, age 42 (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 1,50,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

A Ladowal man, an agricultural labourer and milk vendor, was picked up on 16 August 1991 by six personnel of Police Chowki Ladowal and found dead in custody on the morning of 17 August 1991. The State admitted the death in custody but offered shifting explanations of snake-bite, vasovagal shock and chronic asthma, and produced an affidavit from the widow stating she wanted no action. The Division Bench rejected the explanations, holding the custodian must account for a death in custody and that, the explanation being unacceptable, the inference must follow that it was a custodial death, not a natural death. The Court accepted the writ and awarded Rs.1,50,000 in full and final satisfaction, Rs.50,000 withdrawable by the widow and the balance in FDRs for the three minor children. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> We accordingly conclude that the death of a Ladowal man is a custodial death of which the respondents could not give satisfactory explanation.

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1814190/)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** brutality
**admin subcategory:** custodial_death
**allegations:** {'category': 'Custodial death', '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
**display title redacted:** Ladowal Man vs State of Punjab 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': \[\]}
**followup status:** checked
**institutional response:** {'date': '1994-05-03', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Punjab and Haryana High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Punjab and Haryana High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 150,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '1996 ACJ 193; (1995) 109 PLR 117', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1814190/', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** custodial death
**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:** DB held unexplained death in custody is custodial death; Rs.1,50,000 compensation awarded.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

[Open CW-1994-0004](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1994-0004)