# The Secretary, Home Department and Others vs Damayanthi and Others

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2010-0033](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2010-0033)

## Report card

By judgment dated 3 September 2010 in A.S. No.512 of 2010 and M.P. No.1 of 2010 (against O.S. No.35 of 2004, FTC-IV Bhavani), the Madras High Court (Coram: K. Chandru, J.) returned findings adverse to 2 police personnel, namely: Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode; Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000).

- Register number: TN 28 CW 0002
- Case reference: A.S. No.512 of 2010 and M.P. No.1 of 2010 (against O.S. No.35 of 2004, FTC-IV Bhavani)
- Court and date: Madras High Court (Coram: K. Chandru, J.), 3 September 2010
- Officer(s) at the material time: Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode; Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 96 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908; Article 21 of the Constitution of India
- Finding of the Court (extract): “Even otherwise, the State having failed to secure the life of the deceased had become vicariously liable for his death which had occurred due to the carelessness and negligence on the part of the two armed escorts, i.e. respondents 5 …” (at para 20)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000).
- 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/1042476/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2010-0033)

**Record:** CW-2010-0033 (compiler id CWC-1276); case GAP3-85-005
**Title:** The Secretary, Home Department and Others vs Damayanthi and Others
**Court:** Madras High Court; judges: K. Chandru
**Case number / citation:** A.S. No.512 of 2010 and M.P. No.1 of 2010 (against O.S. No.35 of 2004, FTC-IV Bhavani)
**Judgment:** 2010-09-03 (2010, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1998-04-07 (1998)
**Place:** Erode, Tamil Nadu; city town: Bhavani; police station or unit: Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode (escort party); force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** CPC s.96; Constitution Art. 21
**Officers (gated display forms):** Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode; Armed Reserve Constable, Armed Reserve Police, II Platoon, Erode (2 in record)
**Victims:** Bhavani man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

Undertrial Jambu @ a Bhavani man (prisoner No.6030, Central Prison Coimbatore) was being escorted back from the JM Court, Bhavani on 7.4.1998 when armed miscreants dragged him from town bus route No.83 at Bhavani Flower Bazaar Junction and murdered him. His family sued for damages alleging negligence of the two Armed Reserve escorts, and the trial court decreed Rs.1 lakh with 7.5% interest against the State and both constables jointly and severally. The Court held an undertrial must be presumed innocent and the State vicariously liable for death caused by the carelessness and negligence of the two named escorts. It dismissed the State's appeal with Rs.10,000 costs, enhancing interest to 12% per annum.

> Even otherwise, the State having failed to secure the life of the deceased had become vicariously liable for his death which had occurred due to the carelessness and negligence on the part of the two armed escorts, i.e. respondents 5 and 6.

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1042476/)
**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:** 20
**display title redacted:** The Secretary, Home Department and Others vs Damayanthi 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': '2010-09-03', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Madras High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Madras High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 100,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': 'A.S. No.512 of 2010 and M.P. No.1 of 2010 (against O.S. No.35 of 2004, FTC-IV Bhavani)', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1042476/', '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:** HC upheld damages decree for undertrial killed due to negligence of two named armed escorts.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

[Open CW-2010-0033](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2010-0033)