# Savarkundla Police Police Sub-Inspector and others vs State of Gujarat

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0015](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0015)

## Report card

By judgment dated 14 August 2025 in R/Criminal Appeal No. 1138 of 2000, the Gujarat High Court (Coram: Gita Gopi, J.) affirmed the conviction of the Police Sub-Inspector, Savarkundla Town Police Station, Amreli, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 25,000.

- Register number: GJ 14 CW 0003
- Case reference: R/Criminal Appeal No. 1138 of 2000
- Court and date: Gujarat High Court (Coram: Gita Gopi, J.), 14 August 2025
- Officer(s) at the material time: Police Sub-Inspector, Savarkundla Town Police Station, Amreli
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 304 Part II of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 330 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860
- Finding of the Court (extract): “It was not a crime buried with the grave, but was in police custody, where every police becomes answerable to the public for his custodial torture.” (at para 103)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Conviction upheld. Sentence: imprisonment; maximum substantive term of 7 years. Compensation: Rs 25,000.
- Present status of the proceedings: The judgment is recent and may be subject to appeal; the pendency of an appeal is not a finding.
- Source orders: [Judgment / order (primary source)](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/191741402/); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0015)

**Record:** CW-2025-0015 (compiler id CWC-0148); case SWCUSTOD-021; aliases: CWC-1461
**Title:** Savarkundla Police Police Sub-Inspector and others vs State of Gujarat
**Court:** Gujarat High Court; judges: Gita Gopi
**Case number / citation:** R/Criminal Appeal No. 1138 of 2000
**Judgment:** 2025-08-14 (2025, day precision)
**Incident date:** 1989-10-27 (1989)
**Place:** Amreli, Gujarat; city town: Savarkundla; police station or unit: Savarkundla Town Police Station; force: state_police
**Category:** Violence & unlawful detention
**Sub-category:** custodial death
**Outcome:** Conviction upheld (conviction_upheld)
**Sections:** IPC 304 Part II; IPC 330; IPC 34
**Officers (gated display forms):** Police Sub-Inspector, Savarkundla Town Police Station, Amreli (1 in record)
**Victims:** Savarkundla man, age 22 (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** imprisonment; max 7 yrs; Rs 25,000
**Sentence type:** imprisonment (imprisonment)

The Gujarat High Court dismissed the appeal of deceased PSI of Savarkundla Town police station, continued by his legal heirs, upholding his conviction for the custodial death on 27.10.1989 of 22-year-old a Savarkundla man @ Bhoplo Waghri, picked up for interrogation in a theft complaint and beaten with sticks, kicks and fist blows to extort a confession, dying the same night with 23 external and 5 internal injuries. The Court held the custodial death proved by police records including the appellant's own Accident Death Report, rejected the parity plea based on the six acquitted policemen, and upheld 7 years RI under Section 304-II and 3 years RI under Section 330 with Rs 25,000 compensation to the victim's heirs realizable as arrears of land revenue. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> It was not a crime buried with the grave, but was in police custody, where every police becomes answerable to the public for his custodial torture.

**Sources (3):** [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/191741402/); [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/gujarat-high-court/gujarat-high-court-custodial-death-1989-case-22-year-old-cop-conviction-300986); [livelaw.in](https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/cra11382000gjhc24031306200041314082025-615481.pdf)
**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:** 103
**display title redacted:** Savarkundla Police Police Sub-Inspector and others vs State of Gujarat
**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 Gujarat High Court judgment)', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The trial court convicted the accused police personnel, as recorded in the Gujarat High Court judgment.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation', 'source': 'R/Criminal Appeal No. 1138 of 2000', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}; {'date': '2025-08-14', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Gujarat High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Gujarat High Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the convictions of police personnel.', 'disposition': 'Conviction · Supports allegation (appellate affirmance; trial conviction separate card)', 'source': 'R/Criminal Appeal No. 1138 of 2000', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/191741402/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/high-court/gujarat-high-court/gujarat-high-court-custodial-death-1989-case-22-year-old-cop-conviction-300986', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/cra11382000gjhc24031306200041314082025-615481.pdf', '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:** HC dismissed appeal (via deceased PSI's heirs) and upheld 7y RI for 1989 custodial death; Rs 25,000 to victim heirs.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Conviction upheld.

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