# Balaghat Man v. State of M.P.

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0021](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0021)

## Report card

By judgment dated 27 September 2025 in Criminal Reference (Capital) No. 1 of 2024 with Crl.A. Nos. 2969/2024 and 3272/2024, the Madhya Pradesh High Court (Coram: Vivek Agarwal, Avanindra Kumar Singh, JJ.) returned findings adverse to the Police personnel, Balaghat — judgment names no IO, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000).

- Register number: MP 50 CW 0001
- Case reference: Criminal Reference (Capital) No. 1 of 2024 with Crl.A. Nos. 2969/2024 and 3272/2024 / 2025:MPHC-JBP:49936
- Court and date: Madhya Pradesh High Court (Coram: Vivek Agarwal, Avanindra Kumar Singh, JJ.), 27 September 2025
- Officer(s) at the material time: Police personnel, Balaghat — judgment names no IO
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 363 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 364 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 5M/s.6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012
- Finding of the Court (extract): “It appears to be a motivated and malafide investigation, which cannot be given a seal of approval.” (at para 55)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000).
- 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://mphc.gov.in/upload/jabalpur/MPHCJB/2024/CRRFC/1/CRRFC_1_2024_FinalOrder_27-09-2025_digi.pdf); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0021)

**Record:** CW-2025-0021 (compiler id CWC-0584); case SWFALSEI-016
**Title:** Balaghat Man v. State of M.P.
**Court:** Madhya Pradesh High Court; bench: Jabalpur; judges: Vivek Agarwal; Avanindra Kumar Singh
**Case number / citation:** Criminal Reference (Capital) No. 1 of 2024 with Crl.A. Nos. 2969/2024 and 3272/2024 / 2025:MPHC-JBP:49936
**Judgment:** 2025-09-27 (2025, day precision)
**Incident date:** 2022-04-04 (2022)
**Place:** Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh; police station or unit: Balaghat Police (Special Judge POCSO, Waraseoni trial); force: state_police
**Category:** Other misconduct
**Sub-category:** false implication fabrication
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** IPC 363; IPC 364; IPC 302; IPC 201; POCSO Act s.5M/s.6
**Officers (gated display forms):** Police personnel, Balaghat — judgment names no IO (1 in record)
**Victims:** Balaghat man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 1 lakh (Rs 1,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

A Balaghat man spent about three and a half years on death row after the trial court sentenced him to death for one child's murder and life for the other's in the April 2022 deaths of two minor girls. The High Court set aside the conviction on all charges, holding the investigation motivated and malafide, citing an overwritten section 161 statement date and a last-seen statement recorded only after recoveries and arrest, which destroyed the circumstantial chain. It ordered his forthwith release and awarded Rs 1,00,000 litigation cost from the State, recoverable by the SP from the investigating officer. The court-site PDF was unreachable at verification (certificate error); the operative order is corroborated by the Indian Kanoon listing and two independent press reports. A reported Supreme Court stay on the officer-cost could not be verified. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> It appears to be a motivated and malafide investigation, which cannot be given a seal of approval.

**Sources (4):** [mphc.gov.in](https://mphc.gov.in/upload/jabalpur/MPHCJB/2024/CRRFC/1/CRRFC_1_2024_FinalOrder_27-09-2025_digi.pdf); [indiankanoon.org](https://indiankanoon.org/doc/48035861/); [bhaskarenglish.in](https://www.bhaskarenglish.in/amp/local/mp/news/mp-crime-files-05-11-2025-hc-overturned-death-sentence-of-man-accused-of-killing-nieces-136339082.html); [bhaskarenglish.in](https://www.bhaskarenglish.in/local/mp/news/madhyapradesh-hc-overturns-death-penalty-says-negligent-police-probe-wrongly-punished-innocent-investigating-officer-fined-1-lakh-135908803.html)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** misconduct
**admin subcategory:** false_implication_fabrication
**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:** 55
**display title redacted:** Balaghat Man v. State of M.P.
**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': \['officers', 'sections'\]}
**followup status:** checked
**institutional response:** {'date': '2025-09-27', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Madhya Pradesh High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Madhya Pradesh High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 100,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '2025:MPHC-JBP:49936', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://mphc.gov.in/upload/jabalpur/MPHCJB/2024/CRRFC/1/CRRFC_1_2024_FinalOrder_27-09-2025_digi.pdf', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://indiankanoon.org/doc/48035861/', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.bhaskarenglish.in/amp/local/mp/news/mp-crime-files-05-11-2025-hc-overturned-death-sentence-of-man-accused-of-killing-nieces-136339082.html', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.bhaskarenglish.in/local/mp/news/madhyapradesh-hc-overturns-death-penalty-says-negligent-police-probe-wrongly-punished-innocent-investigating-officer-fined-1-lakh-135908803.html', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** false implication fabrication
**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:** Death-row conviction set aside as motivated probe; Rs 1L to acquitted man, recoverable from IO.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

[Open CW-2025-0021](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2025-0021)