# Bengaluru Woman vs The Chief Secretary & Ors.

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1995-0006](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1995-0006)

## Report card

By judgment dated 14 July 1995, the Karnataka High Court returned findings adverse to 3 police personnel, namely: Sub-Inspector of Police, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Head Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Police Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 2 lakh (Rs 2,00,000).

- Register number: KA 01 CW 0001
- Case reference: 1995 SCC OnLine Kar 245; 1995 Cri LJ 4148; ILR 1995 KAR 2424; 1996 ACJ 1091; 1995 (6) Kar LJ 8
- Court and date: Karnataka High Court, 14 July 1995
- Officer(s) at the material time: Sub-Inspector of Police, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Head Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Police Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Article 21 of the Constitution of India; Article 226 of the Constitution of India
- Finding of the Court (extract): “As we have said earlier, once a prisoner is in police custody, custodial death cannot be treated in casual and cavalier fashion. We find as stated earlier, the legal heirs of the victims do not get any relief for many …” (at para 15)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 2 lakh (Rs 2,00,000).
- 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/541497/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1995-0006)

**Record:** CW-1995-0006 (compiler id CWC-0200); case KARNAT-015
**Title:** Bengaluru Woman vs The Chief Secretary & Ors.
**Court:** Karnataka High Court
**Case number / citation:** 1995 SCC OnLine Kar 245; 1995 Cri LJ 4148; ILR 1995 KAR 2424; 1996 ACJ 1091; 1995 (6) Kar LJ 8
**Judgment:** 1995-07-14 (1995, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1988-05-18 (1988)
**Place:** Bengaluru Urban, Karnataka; city town: Bengaluru; police station or unit: Subramanyanagar Police Station; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** Constitution Art 21; Constitution Art 226
**Officers (gated display forms):** Sub-Inspector of Police, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Head Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru; Police Constable, Subramanyanagar Police Station, Bengaluru (3 in record)
**Victims:** Bengaluru man, age 40 (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 2 lakh (Rs 2,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

A Bengaluru man, arrested by Subramanyanagar police for autorickshaw theft, died in the station on 18 May 1988; police claimed he hanged himself with a torn woollen rug, and a court-ordered Chief Metropolitan Magistrate enquiry accepted suicide and denied damages. The Division Bench rejected the enquiry report, holding that the police examined neither the alleged eyewitnesses nor the post-mortem doctor and discharged none of the onus on them to show absence of negligence. The court awarded Rs 2,00,000 compensation to the widow and three minor children and directed the State to work out a scheme for interim relief of not less than Rs 25,000 within one month in every custodial death. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> As we have said earlier, once a prisoner is in police custody, custodial death cannot be treated in casual and cavalier fashion. We find as stated earlier, the legal heirs of the victims do not get any relief for many years.

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/541497/)
**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
**court quote para:** 15
**display title redacted:** Bengaluru Woman vs The Chief Secretary & Ors.
**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': '1995-07-14', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Karnataka High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Karnataka High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 200,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '1995 SCC OnLine Kar 245; 1995 Cri LJ 4148; ILR 1995 KAR 2424; 1996 ACJ 1091; 1995 (6) Kar LJ 8', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/541497/', '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:** Karnataka HC Division Bench rejected the suicide theory and CMM report in a 1988 custodial death, held police negligent, and awarded Rs 2 lakh compensation with a statewide interim-relief direction.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

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