# Jamnagar Man vs State of Gujarat & Anr.

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1997-0019](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1997-0019)

## Report card

By judgment dated 17 October 1997, the Gujarat High Court (Coram: N. N. Mathur, J.) returned findings adverse to the District Superintendent of Police, Jamnagar police, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 1,50,000).

- Register number: GJ 10 CW 0001
- Case reference: (1998) 1 GLR 61
- Court and date: Gujarat High Court (Coram: N. N. Mathur, J.), 17 October 1997
- Officer(s) at the material time: District Superintendent of Police, Jamnagar police
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 323 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; Section 155 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; Section 156 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; Section 157 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973
- Finding of the Court (extract): “As we have found that prima facie, the death of a Jamnagar man is traceable to the custodial torture, it would be just and proper to award suitable compensation as interim measure to Smt. Ushaben Punjani, widow of the deceased …” (at para 19)
- 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/243728/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-1997-0019)

**Record:** CW-1997-0019 (compiler id CWC-1198); case GAP3-46-001
**Title:** Jamnagar Man vs State of Gujarat & Anr.
**Court:** Gujarat High Court; judges: N. N. Mathur
**Case number / citation:** (1998) 1 GLR 61
**Judgment:** 1997-10-17 (1997, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1992-01-08 (1992)
**Place:** Jamnagar, Gujarat; city town: Jamnagar; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** IPC 323; CrPC 154; CrPC 155; CrPC 156; CrPC 157; CrPC 174
**Officers (gated display forms):** District Superintendent of Police, Jamnagar police (1 in record)
**Victims:** Jamnagar man; Jamnagar resident; Jamnagar resident (3 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 1,50,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

The judgment of the Gujarat High Court records the following account. On 8-1-1992, Jamnagar police picked up petty trader \[name withheld\] with a Jamnagar resident and a Jamnagar resident for interrogation, and DSP called all three into his chamber at about 9 p.m. and beat them with a big stick, a Jamnagar man severely on the chest, stomach and other parts of the body; a Jamnagar man died on the way to hospital. The post-mortem disclosed ante-mortem injuries and a DGP (Crime) inquiry found the custodial-torture allegation true, though the panel attributed death to cardiac arrest. The Gujarat High Court held the death was prima facie traceable to custodial torture in gross violation of Article 21, awarded Rs.1.5 lakh interim compensation to the widow, ordered the dropped departmental enquiry against the DSP to proceed, and directed the police to complete investigation and file a report within two months. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> As we have found that prima facie, the death of a Jamnagar man is traceable to the custodial torture, it would be just and proper to award suitable compensation as interim measure to Smt. Ushaben Punjani, widow of the deceased \[name withheld\].

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/243728/)
**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:** 19
**display title redacted:** Jamnagar Man vs State of Gujarat & Anr.
**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': '1997-10-17', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Gujarat High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Gujarat High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 150,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '(1998) 1 GLR 61', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/243728/', '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:** Custodial death prima facie traced to DSP's beating; Rs.1.5L interim compensation with probe directions.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

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