# Delhi Police Constable v. State of NCT, Delhi

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2023-0047](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2023-0047)

## Report card

By judgment dated 17 July 2023 in Criminal Appeal No. 2390 of 2010, the Supreme Court of India (Coram: Abhay S. Oka, Rajesh Bindal, JJ.) recorded the conviction of the Constable, Delhi Police, I.P. Estate Police Station.

- Register number: DL 00 CW 0030
- Case reference: Criminal Appeal No. 2390 of 2010 / 2023 INSC 622; 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 539
- Court and date: Supreme Court of India (Coram: Abhay S. Oka, Rajesh Bindal, JJ.), 17 July 2023
- Officer(s) at the material time: Constable, Delhi Police, I.P. Estate Police Station
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 304A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
- Finding of the Court (extract): “The conviction of the appellant under Section 302 of the IPC is set aside and he is held guilty of committing the offence punishable under Section 304A of IPC.” (at para 21)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Conviction entered by Supreme Court. Sentence: imprisonment; maximum substantive term of 2 years.
- 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://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/539-arvind-kumar-v-state-nct-of-delhi-17-jul-2023-482021.pdf); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2023-0047)

**Record:** CW-2023-0047 (compiler id CWC-0914); case GAP2-60-004
**Title:** Delhi Police Constable v. State of NCT, Delhi
**Court:** Supreme Court of India; judges: Abhay S. Oka; Rajesh Bindal
**Case number / citation:** Criminal Appeal No. 2390 of 2010 / 2023 INSC 622; 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 539
**Judgment:** 2023-07-17 (2023, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1994-12-28 (1994)
**Place:** Delhi; city town: New Delhi; police station or unit: I.P. Estate Police Station; force: state_police
**Category:** Other misconduct
**Sub-category:** other
**Outcome:** Conviction entered by Supreme Court (conviction_by_sc)
**Sections:** IPC 304A
**Officers (gated display forms):** Constable, Delhi Police, I.P. Estate Police Station (1 in record)
**Victims:** New Delhi man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** imprisonment; max 2 yrs
**Sentence type:** imprisonment (imprisonment)

The judgment of the Supreme Court of India records the following account. On 28 December 1994 guard constable, carrying an SAF carbine at I.P. Estate Police Station, went to stop fellow constable from long use of the official telephone, and during a scuffle the carbine entangled in his belt chain and five rounds discharged into the deceased neck, killing him. A Section 304A case was first registered, but after the deceased father complaint the Crime Branch chargesheeted murder, and the trial court and Delhi High Court convicted under Section 302 IPC with life sentence. The Supreme Court disbelieved the alleged motive, accepted the eyewitness account of accidental discharge, and held none of the Section 299 culpable-homicide ingredients proved. It set aside the murder conviction but held the failure to keep the change lever on safety was gross negligence causing death, substituting a Section 304A conviction treated as already undergone after over eight years served. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> The conviction of the appellant under Section 302 of the IPC is set aside and he is held guilty of committing the offence punishable under Section 304A of IPC.

**Sources (3):** [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/539-arvind-kumar-v-state-nct-of-delhi-17-jul-2023-482021.pdf); [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/186731186/); [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/amp/supreme-court/supreme-court-modifies-conviction-death-accidental-firing-pistol-safety-position-233101)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** misconduct
**admin subcategory:** other
**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
**display title redacted:** Delhi Police Constable v. State of NCT, Delhi
**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': '2023-07-17', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Supreme Court of India', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Supreme Court of India entered convictions against police personnel in this judgment.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation', 'source': '2023 INSC 622; 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 539', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/539-arvind-kumar-v-state-nct-of-delhi-17-jul-2023-482021.pdf', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/186731186/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/amp/supreme-court/supreme-court-modifies-conviction-death-accidental-firing-pistol-safety-position-233101', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** other
**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:** SC set aside murder conviction but convicted constable under Section 304A for negligent service-weapon death.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Conviction entered by Supreme Court.

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