# Howrah Man vs Secretary, Department of Home & Ors.

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2006-0011](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2006-0011)

## Report card

By judgment dated 3 November 2006, the Calcutta High Court (Coram: Bhaskar Bhattacharya, Prabuddh Sankar Banerjee, JJ.) returned findings adverse to 3 police personnel, namely: Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 5 lakh (Rs 5,00,000).

- Register number: WB 11 CW 0003
- Case reference: (2007) 1 CALLT 589 (HC); 2007 (1) CHN 351
- Court and date: Calcutta High Court (Coram: Bhaskar Bhattacharya, Prabuddh Sankar Banerjee, JJ.), 3 November 2006
- Officer(s) at the material time: Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 304 Part II of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Article 21 of the Constitution of India
- Finding of the Court (extract): “ends of justice will be met if we direct the State Government to pay a lump sum of Rs. 5 lakh to the appellant in addition to the fines realised from the convicted persons”
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 5 lakh (Rs 5,00,000).
- 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/1149295/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2006-0011)

**Record:** CW-2006-0011 (compiler id CWC-0420); case WESTBE-001
**Title:** Howrah Man vs Secretary, Department of Home & Ors.
**Court:** Calcutta High Court; judges: Bhaskar Bhattacharya; Prabuddh Sankar Banerjee
**Case number / citation:** (2007) 1 CALLT 589 (HC); 2007 (1) CHN 351
**Judgment:** 2006-11-03 (2006, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1980-02-26 (1980)
**Place:** Howrah, West Bengal; city town: Howrah; police station or unit: Golabari Police Station, Howrah; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** IPC 304 Part II; IPC 34; Constitution of India Art. 21
**Officers (gated display forms):** Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah; Police personnel, Golabari Police Station, Howrah (3 in record)
**Victims:** Howrah man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 5 lakh (Rs 5,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

The judgment of the Calcutta High Court records the following account. The appellant's son, a railway employee in his twenties, was arrested on 26 February 1980 and beaten to death at Golabari police station, Howrah; police refused to register the family's complaint, forcing the father to approach the SDJM. The Sessions Court acquitted all accused policemen, but a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court reversed the acquittal in 1990 and convicted three policemen under Section 304 Part II read with Section 34 IPC, a finding the Supreme Court affirmed while unifying the sentences at five years' rigorous imprisonment each. After the victim's father was murdered at the instance of the convicted policemen, the victim's mother sought compensation. The Division Bench held the State vicariously liable for the custodial death, rejected the delay objection, and awarded Rs 5 lakh compensation plus Rs 10,000 costs. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> ends of justice will be met if we direct the State Government to pay a lump sum of Rs. 5 lakh to the appellant in addition to the fines realised from the convicted persons

**Sources (3):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1149295/); [casemine.com](https://www.casemine.com/judgement/in/56096051e4b01497112cc667); [sooperkanoon.com](https://sooperkanoon.com/case/882823/padma-rani-thakur-vs-secretary-department)
**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:** Howrah Man vs Secretary, Department of Home & 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': '2006-11-03', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Calcutta High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Calcutta High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 500,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '(2007) 1 CALLT 589 (HC); 2007 (1) CHN 351', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1149295/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.casemine.com/judgement/in/56096051e4b01497112cc667', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://sooperkanoon.com/case/882823/padma-rani-thakur-vs-secretary-department', '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:** Calcutta HC Division Bench awarded Rs 5 lakh compensation for 1980 custodial death at Golabari PS after convictions were affirmed by SC.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

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