# The State of Jharkhand vs RPF Constable

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0042](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0042)

## Report card

By judgment dated 19 September 2024 in Death Reference No. 4 of 2023 with Criminal Appeal (DB) No. 588 of 2023, the Jharkhand High Court (Coram: Ananda Sen, Gautam Kumar Choudhary, JJ.) affirmed the conviction of the Constable, RPF Post, Barkakana.

- Register number: JH 24 CW 0001
- Case reference: Death Reference No. 4 of 2023 with Criminal Appeal (DB) No. 588 of 2023 / 2024 LiveLaw (Jha) 154
- Court and date: Jharkhand High Court (Coram: Ananda Sen, Gautam Kumar Choudhary, JJ.), 19 September 2024
- Officer(s) at the material time: Constable, RPF Post, Barkakana
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 27 of the Arms Act, 1959
- Finding of the Court (extract): “The victims were unarmed persons, whereas the appellant was a Constable in RPF who resorted to indiscriminate firing by service pistol.” (at para 11)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Conviction upheld. Sentence: imprisonment and fine; maximum substantive term of 25 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/display-1-563724.pdf); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0042)

**Record:** CW-2024-0042 (compiler id CWC-0878); case GAP2-48-001
**Title:** The State of Jharkhand vs RPF Constable
**Court:** Jharkhand High Court; judges: Ananda Sen; Gautam Kumar Choudhary
**Case number / citation:** Death Reference No. 4 of 2023 with Criminal Appeal (DB) No. 588 of 2023 / 2024 LiveLaw (Jha) 154
**Judgment:** 2024-09-19 (2024, day precision)
**Incident date:** 2019-08-17 (2019)
**Place:** Ramgarh, Jharkhand; city town: Barkakana; police station or unit: RPF Post, Barkakana, Ramgarh; force: railway
**Category:** Other misconduct
**Sub-category:** other
**Outcome:** Conviction upheld (conviction_upheld)
**Sections:** IPC 302; IPC 307; Arms Act 1959 s.27
**Officers (gated display forms):** Constable, RPF Post, Barkakana (1 in record)
**Victims:** Barkakana man, age 55; Barkakana woman, age 39; Barkakana woman, age 32; Barkakana woman; Barkakana man (5 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** mixed; max 25 yrs
**Sentence type:** mixed (mixed)

The judgment of the Jharkhand High Court records the following account. On 17 August 2019 RPF constable, posted at Barkakana, opened indiscriminate fire with his service pistol on his neighbour milk-supplier's unarmed family when asked for milk dues, killing three members including a pregnant woman and injuring two. The trial court convicted him under sections 302 and 307 IPC and section 27 of the Arms Act and sentenced him to death. The Jharkhand High Court upheld the murder convictions, held section 27 Arms Act was not attracted to a licensed service pistol, answered the death reference in the negative, and commuted the sentence to rigorous imprisonment of not less than 25 years without remission plus fines. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> The victims were unarmed persons, whereas the appellant was a Constable in RPF who resorted to indiscriminate firing by service pistol.

**Sources (3):** [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/display-1-563724.pdf); [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/jharkhand-high-court/jharkhand-high-court-firing-unlicensed-prohibited-arms-invites-conviction-under-section-27-arms-act-not-service-pistol-271366); [lawtrend.in](https://lawtrend.in/jharkhand-rpf-constable-sentenced-to-death-for-killing-three-of-family/)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** brutality
**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:** 11
**display title redacted:** The State of Jharkhand vs RPF Constable
**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': None, 'action_type': 'Conviction', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Trial court (as recorded in the Jharkhand High Court judgment)', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The trial court convicted the accused police personnel, as recorded in the Jharkhand High Court judgment.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation', 'source': '2024 LiveLaw (Jha) 154', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}; {'date': '2024-09-19', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Jharkhand High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Jharkhand High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the convictions of police personnel.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation (appellate affirmance; trial conviction separate card)', 'source': '2024 LiveLaw (Jha) 154', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/display-1-563724.pdf', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/jharkhand-high-court/jharkhand-high-court-firing-unlicensed-prohibited-arms-invites-conviction-under-section-27-arms-act-not-service-pistol-271366', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://lawtrend.in/jharkhand-rpf-constable-sentenced-to-death-for-killing-three-of-family/', '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:** RPF constable's triple-murder conviction upheld; death commuted to 25 years RI without remission.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Conviction upheld.

[Open CW-2024-0042](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2024-0042)