# Gondia Police Police Constable and others v. State of Maharashtra

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0017](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0017)

## Report card

By judgment dated 25 September 2024 in Criminal Appeal Nos. 1614-1618 of 2012, the Supreme Court of India (Coram: C. T. Ravikumar, Sanjay Kumar, JJ.) affirmed the conviction of 7 police personnel, namely: Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Sub-Inspector, Gondia City Police Station; Head Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station.

- Register number: MH 35 CW 0006
- Case reference: Criminal Appeal Nos. 1614-1618 of 2012 / 2024 INSC 734
- Court and date: Supreme Court of India (Coram: C. T. Ravikumar, Sanjay Kumar, JJ.), 25 September 2024
- Officer(s) at the material time: Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Sub-Inspector, Gondia City Police Station; Head Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 330 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 348 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 387 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
- Finding of the Court (extract): “In view of confirmation of the finding on custodial torture their conviction and consequential sentence under Section 330, 348 and 387 read with Section 34, IPC is to be confirmed.” (at para 50)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Conviction upheld. Sentence: imprisonment; maximum substantive term of 1 year.
- Present status of the proceedings: Supreme Court of India, 25 September 2024: appeal pending.
- Source orders: [Judgment / order (primary source)](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/199957261/); [Supreme Court of India order](https://www.livelaw.in/amp/top-stories/supreme-court-delivers-split-verdict-on-police-officers-convictions-in-decades-old-custodial-death-case-270702); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0017)

**Record:** CW-2024-0017 (compiler id CWC-0767); case MAHARA-006; aliases: CWC-0248
**Title:** Gondia Police Police Constable and others v. State of Maharashtra
**Court:** Supreme Court of India; judges: C. T. Ravikumar; Sanjay Kumar
**Case number / citation:** Criminal Appeal Nos. 1614-1618 of 2012 / 2024 INSC 734
**Judgment:** 2024-09-25 (2024, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1995-12-15 (1995)
**Place:** Gondia, Maharashtra (district at time: Bhandara); city town: Gondia; police station or unit: Gondia City Police Station (Detective Branch Room), Gondia; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Conviction upheld (conviction_upheld)
**Sections:** IPC 330; IPC 348; IPC 387; IPC 34
**Officers (gated display forms):** Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Sub-Inspector, Gondia City Police Station; Head Constable, Gondia City Police Station; Police Constable, Gondia City Police Station (7 in record)
**Victims:** Gondia man; Gondia woman; Gondia woman; Gondia woman; Gondia woman; Gondia woman (6 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** imprisonment; max 1 yrs
**Sentence type:** imprisonment (imprisonment)

The Supreme Court (2-judge bench, split verdict) confirmed the finding of custodial torture of a Gondia man @ a Gondia man and upheld the conviction and sentence of four Gondia City policemen (A2 \[name withheld\], A4 \[name withheld\], A3 \[name withheld\], A5 \[name withheld\]) under Sections 330, 348 and 387 read with 34 IPC (one year rigorous imprisonment plus Rs 1,000 fine on each count). The majority (Ravikumar J.) acquitted them of Sections 304 Part II, 331, 201, 202, 203 and 218 IPC for want of proof of homicidal death, holding the recovered burnt body was never proved to be a Gondia man's and the fingerprint identification was guesswork. Sanjay Kumar J. dissented, holding the policemen staged a false escape drama and concocted records, and voted to maintain all convictions and dismiss all appeals; A1 \[name withheld\]'s appeal was held abated on his death (dissent noted no record of death).

> In view of confirmation of the finding on custodial torture their conviction and consequential sentence under Section 330, 348 and 387 read with Section 34, IPC is to be confirmed.

**Sources (5):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/199957261/); [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/708824/); [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1409555/); [verdictum.in](https://www.verdictum.in/pdf_upload/manik-v-the-state-of-maharashtrawatermark-1655838.pdf); [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-delivers-split-verdict-on-police-officers-convictions-in-decades-old-custodial-death-case-270702)
**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:** 50
**display title redacted:** Gondia Police Police Constable and others v. State of Maharashtra
**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': 'wrong_facts', 'corrections_applied': \[\]}
**followup status:** checked
**institutional response:** {'date': None, 'action_type': 'Conviction', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Trial court (as recorded in the Supreme Court of India judgment)', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The trial court convicted the accused police personnel, as recorded in the Supreme Court of India judgment.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation', 'source': '2024 INSC 734', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}; {'date': '2024-09-25', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Supreme Court of India', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Supreme Court of India dismissed the appeal and upheld the convictions of police personnel.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation (appellate affirmance; trial conviction separate card)', 'source': '2024 INSC 734', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}; {'date': '2024-09-25', 'action_type': 'Appeal pending', 'status': 'Pending', 'authority': 'Supreme Court of India', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': "As of 25 September 2024, an appeal arising from this judgment was pending before the Supreme Court of India (officers: \[name withheld\], \[name withheld\], \[name withheld\], \[name withheld\], \[name withheld\]); the judgment's findings had not been set aside on that date.", 'disposition': 'Later proceeding · Appeal pending', 'source': 'https://www.livelaw.in/amp/top-stories/supreme-court-delivers-split-verdict-on-police-officers-convictions-in-decades-old-custodial-death-case-270702', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**later proceedings:** {'court': 'Supreme Court of India', 'date': '2024-09-25', 'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/amp/top-stories/supreme-court-delivers-split-verdict-on-police-officers-convictions-in-decades-old-custodial-death-case-270702', 'outcome': 'pending_appeal'}
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/199957261/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/708824/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1409555/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.verdictum.in/pdf_upload/manik-v-the-state-of-maharashtrawatermark-1655838.pdf', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-delivers-split-verdict-on-police-officers-convictions-in-decades-old-custodial-death-case-270702', '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:** Primary SC judgment plus impugned HC judgment (12-07-2011) both verified. Accused are police; custodial-torture convictions upheld so conviction_upheld stands. Incident span 15-22 Dec 1995 per HC charge. Name/rank spellings corrected per HC accused memo (Aglawe, Ratiram, Dongare; \[name withheld\] is PC not HC). A2 buckle omitted: HC memo repeats 409 for both A2 and A3 (apparent typo). compensation_inr null: SC awarded none; input's Rs 74,000x5 HC compensation (Cri WP 293/2002) is a separate judgment, not re-verified.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Conviction upheld.

[Open CW-2024-0017](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0017)