# Serampore Man v. State of West Bengal and Anr.

HTML version: [https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2026-0049](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2026-0049)

## Report card

By judgment dated 22 May 2026 in CRA (DB) No. 25 of 2025, the Calcutta High Court (Coram: Arijit Banerjee, Apurba Sinha Ray, JJ.) returned findings adverse to the Sub-Inspector, Serampore Women Police Station, and directed payment of compensation of Rs 10 lakh (Rs 10,00,000).

- Register number: WB 15 CW 0004
- Case reference: CRA (DB) No. 25 of 2025 / 2026:CHC-AS:811-DB
- Court and date: Calcutta High Court (Coram: Arijit Banerjee, Apurba Sinha Ray, JJ.), 22 May 2026
- Officer(s) at the material time: Sub-Inspector, Serampore Women Police Station
- Present service status: Not ascertained from the cited sources.
- Provisions invoked: Section 376(2)(f) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 328 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 506 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860; Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012
- Finding of the Court (extract): “The Investigating Officer (IO) failed to take even rudimentary steps to verify the allegations against Professor a Serampore man” (at para 60)
- Verdict, sentence and quantum: Adverse finding + compensation. Sentence: compensation only. Compensation: Rs 10 lakh (Rs 10,00,000).
- 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://www.verdictum.in/pdf_upload/2026/05/25/display-6watermark-1778205.pdf); [Permanent link to this record](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2026-0049)

**Record:** CW-2026-0049 (compiler id CWC-1160); case GAP3-36-001
**Title:** Serampore Man v. State of West Bengal and Anr.
**Court:** Calcutta High Court; judges: Arijit Banerjee; Apurba Sinha Ray
**Case number / citation:** CRA (DB) No. 25 of 2025 / 2026:CHC-AS:811-DB
**Judgment:** 2026-05-22 (2026, day precision)
**Incident date:** 2022-03-23 (2022)
**Place:** Hooghly, West Bengal; city town: Serampore; police station or unit: Serampore Women Police Station; force: state_police
**Category:** Other misconduct
**Sub-category:** dereliction evidence tampering
**Outcome:** Adverse finding + compensation (adverse_finding_compensation)
**Sections:** IPC 376(2)(f); IPC 328; IPC 506; POCSO Act 2012 s.6
**Officers (gated display forms):** Sub-Inspector, Serampore Women Police Station (1 in record)
**Victims:** Serampore man (1 in record)
**Sentence / compensation:** compensation only; Rs 10 lakh (Rs 10,00,000)
**Sentence type:** compensation only (compensation_only)

Professor a Serampore man was convicted by the Serampore trial court in July 2024 in Women PS Case No. 12 of 2022 and spent over four years in custody. The Calcutta High Court held the investigation by S.\[name withheld\] was perfunctory and biased: a vaginal swab was never sent for forensic examination, neutral residents were ignored, and key witnesses were omitted from the chargesheet. The Court set aside the conviction, acquitted the appellant, and held his prolonged deprivation of liberty was directly precipitated by the IO's gross incompetence. It ordered Rs. 10 lakh compensation within three months, recoverable from the delinquent officials, and directed the DGP to consider disciplinary proceedings against the IO. Matters not addressed in the cited judgment text are not recorded here.

> The Investigating Officer (IO) failed to take even rudimentary steps to verify the allegations against Professor a Serampore man

**Sources (2):** [verdictum.in](https://www.verdictum.in/pdf_upload/2026/05/25/display-6watermark-1778205.pdf); [verdictum.in](https://www.verdictum.in/calcutta-high-court/pratap-digal-v-state-of-west-bengal-2026chc-as811-db-reverse-burden-us-29-pocso-act-interested-1614641)
**Verification:** V2 · Externally reported
**Review:** Solo Staff combined review (one combined attestation) — not yet recorded
**admin category:** misconduct
**admin subcategory:** dereliction_evidence_tampering
**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:** 60
**display title redacted:** Serampore Man v. State of West Bengal and Anr.
**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': '2026-05-22', 'action_type': 'Order issued', 'status': 'Concluded', 'authority': 'Calcutta High Court', 'independence': 'External', 'legal_effect': 'Binding', 'description': 'The Calcutta High Court recorded adverse findings against police personnel and ordered Rs 1,000,000.', 'disposition': 'Compensation ordered · Supports allegation (for the compensated wrong only)', 'source': '2026:CHC-AS:811-DB', 'recheck': 'Not yet re-checked.'}
**last checked:** 2026-09-19
**link checked per url:** {'url': 'https://www.verdictum.in/pdf_upload/2026/05/25/display-6watermark-1778205.pdf', 'link_checked': None}; {'url': 'https://www.verdictum.in/calcutta-high-court/pratap-digal-v-state-of-west-bengal-2026chc-as811-db-reverse-burden-us-29-pocso-act-interested-1614641', 'link_checked': None}
**retracted:** {"is_retracted": false}
**service:** police
**source assessment:** {"established": null, "basis": null}
**status:** current
**subcategory display:** dereliction evidence tampering
**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 HC PDF verified; conviction set aside, Rs.10L compensation for IO-caused wrongful incarceration.
**verification badge:** V2 · Externally reported
**verification status:** V2
**watch:** babuwatch

Status: Adverse finding + compensation.

[Open CW-2026-0049](https://datalibertarian.in/babuwatch/incident/CW-2026-0049)