# Langpih Man and Others vs The Union of India and Others

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2014-0018](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2014-0018)

## Report card

By judgment dated 31 January 2014 in WP(C) Nos. 144/2010, 145/2010, 146/2010 and 147/2010, the Meghalaya High Court (Coram: P.C. Pant, T. Nandakumar Singh, JJ.) returned findings adverse to the accused police personnel, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 8 lakh (Rs 8,00,000).

- Register number: ML 06 CW 0002
- Case reference: WP(C) Nos. 144/2010, 145/2010, 146/2010 and 147/2010 / AIR 2015 Meghalaya 12
- Court and date: Meghalaya High Court (Coram: P.C. Pant, T. Nandakumar Singh, JJ.), 31 January 2014
- Officer(s) at the material time: Not identified in the cited sources (4th Assam Police Battalion, Lampi Border Outposts (under Boko PS, Kamrup, Assam))
- 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): “From the above discussions, we are of the considered view that the writ petitions of this nature for a direction to pay monetary compensation for the deprivation of the fundamental rights of the citizen and for the death of citizen …” (at para 21-22)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 8 lakh (Rs 8,00,000).
- 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/90203921/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2014-0018)

**Record:** CW-2014-0018 (compiler id CWC-0865); case GAP2-43-006
**Title:** Langpih Man and Others vs The Union of India and Others
**Court:** Meghalaya High Court; judges: P.C. Pant; T. Nandakumar Singh
**Case number / citation:** WP(C) Nos. 144/2010, 145/2010, 146/2010 and 147/2010 / AIR 2015 Meghalaya 12
**Judgment:** 2014-01-31 (2014, day precision)
**Incident date:** 2010-05-14 (2010)
**Place:** West Khasi Hills, Meghalaya; city town: Langpih; police station or unit: 4th Assam Police Battalion, Lampi Border Outposts (under Boko PS, Kamrup, Assam); force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** disproportionate force
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** Constitution Art. 21; Constitution Art. 226
**Officers (gated display forms):** None named (0 in record)
**Victims:** Langpih man; Langpih man; Langpih man; Langpih man (4 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 8 lakh (Rs 8,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

The judgment of the Meghalaya High Court records the following account. On 14.05.2010, weekly market day at Langpih on the Assam-Meghalaya border, Assam Police personnel fired on civilians, killing a Langpih man, a Langpih man, a Langpih man and a Langpih man and injuring several others; Assam contended a mob had attacked the border outpost. The States of Assam and Meghalaya had each paid Rs. 3 lakh ex-gratia per deceased during the pendency of the writ petitions. The Division Bench held the four deaths in Assam Police firing admitted, fixed strict public-law liability on the State of Assam for the Article 21 violation, and ordered a further Rs. 2 lakh per widow (Rs. 8 lakh total), payable by the State of Assam and the DGP Assam within three months, without prejudice to other legal remedies. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> From the above discussions, we are of the considered view that the writ petitions of this nature for a direction to pay monetary compensation for the deprivation of the fundamental rights of the citizen and for the death of citizen as a result of Police firing is maintainable inasmuch as a remedy for payment of monetary compensation is available in public law based on strict liability for contravention of the fundamental rights to which the principle of sovereign immunity does not apply, even though it may be available as a defence in private law in an action based on tort. For deciding the amount of compensation to be paid under the public law realm, we have given our anxious consideration to the age of the said four persons and their earnings which are mentioned in the writ petitions and we are of the considered view that each of the writ petitioners should be paid further amount of Rs.2 lakhs as compensation over and above, the amount of 6 lakhs which are already been received by each of the petioners as ex-gratia.

**Sources (1):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/90203921/)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** brutality
**admin subcategory:** disproportionate_force
**allegations:** {'category': 'Other', '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:** 21-22
**display title redacted:** Langpih Man and Others vs The Union of India 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': '2014-01-31', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Meghalaya High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Meghalaya High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 800,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': 'AIR 2015 Meghalaya 12', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/90203921/', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** disproportionate force
**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:** Four deaths in Assam Police firing admitted; Rs. 2L further compensation per widow ordered.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

[Open CW-2014-0018](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2014-0018)