# Seithur Man and Others vs M. Guruvammal and Others

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2013-0031](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2013-0031)

## Report card

By judgment dated 12 August 2013 in W.A. No.3689 of 2002 and W.A. No.SR101292 of 2010, the Madras High Court (Coram: R. Banumathi, T.S. Sivagnanam, JJ.) returned findings adverse to 3 police personnel, namely: Sub-Inspector of Police, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 2.5 lakh (Rs 2,50,000).

- Register number: TN 63 CW 0003
- Case reference: W.A. No.3689 of 2002 and W.A. No.SR101292 of 2010
- Court and date: Madras High Court (Coram: R. Banumathi, T.S. Sivagnanam, JJ.), 12 August 2013
- Officer(s) at the material time: Sub-Inspector of Police, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Not stated in the cited sources
- Finding of the Court (extract): “Learned single Judge elaborately considered the evidence and materials placed and arrived at the conclusion that death was due to torture by the Appellants and 8th Respondent and since the Appellants and 8th Respondent were incharge, the learned Judge has …” (at para 10)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 2.5 lakh (Rs 2,50,000).
- 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/165216180/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2013-0031)

**Record:** CW-2013-0031 (compiler id CWC-0842); case GAP2-39-005
**Title:** Seithur Man and Others vs M. Guruvammal and Others
**Court:** Madras High Court; judges: R. Banumathi; T.S. Sivagnanam
**Case number / citation:** W.A. No.3689 of 2002 and W.A. No.SR101292 of 2010
**Judgment:** 2013-08-12 (2013, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1989-12-30 (1989)
**Place:** Virudhunagar, Tamil Nadu; city town: Seithur; police station or unit: Seithur Police Station; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Officers (gated display forms):** Sub-Inspector of Police, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station; Constable, Seithur Police Station (3 in record)
**Victims:** Seithur man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 2.5 lakh (Rs 2,50,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

A Seithur man was picked up on 23.12.1989 by the Seithur SI and constables, kept in illegal custody without production before a Magistrate, and beaten to death on 30.12.1989; his body was found hanging from a tree on 02.01.1990. The Division Bench recorded the post-mortem showing 15 injuries caused by lathis and needles poked near the genitals, and the RDO-cum-Executive Magistrate report, holding the officers had no explanation for the custodial injuries. It dismissed the appeals of SI and Constables and \[name withheld\], upholding the 03.10.2001 order directing the State to pay Rs.2,50,000 with 6% interest from 01.01.1990 (plus Rs.6,000 costs) and to recover it in equal moieties from the three officers' salaries. The compensation award itself had become final when the State's appeal (W.A. No.557/2006) was dismissed on 10.07.2006. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> Learned single Judge elaborately considered the evidence and materials placed and arrived at the conclusion that death was due to torture by the Appellants and 8th Respondent and since the Appellants and 8th Respondent were incharge, the learned Judge has rightly ordered that the compensation of Rs.2,50,000/- be recovered from Appellants and 8th Respondent in equal moieties. We do not find any reason to interfere with the findings of the learned single Judge and the appeals are liable to be dismissed.

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/165216180/)
**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:** 10
**display title redacted:** Seithur Man and Others vs M. Guruvammal 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': '2013-08-12', '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 250,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': 'W.A. No.3689 of 2002 and W.A. No.SR101292 of 2010', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/165216180/', '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:** Officers' appeals dismissed; Rs.2.5L custodial-death compensation recoverable from SI and two constables in equal moieties.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

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