Keywords: Delhi High Court, Custodial Death, Justice Mukta Gupta, Justice Anish Dayal, Section 304, Death by Negligence
The Delhi High Court affirmed the lower court’s verdict condemning five Uttar Pradesh Police officials to ten years in jail for the death in custody of Sonu, a 26-year-old teenager. A Division Bench of Justices Mukta Gupta and Anish Dayal affirmed the decision sentencing an inspector to three years in jail in the same case for kidnapping Sonu.
The Court dismissed the police officer’s claims that the deceased committed suicide. It discovered significant anomalies in the documents, as well as that the general journal entries were manufactured and edited.
Sonu was arrested at 3:25 a.m. on September 2, 2006, at a NOIDA prison for being wanted in a robbery investigation. He was discovered dead in the lock-up about 5:30 a.m. The case was then moved to a Delhi court on the grounds that the accused were officials of the Uttar Pradesh Police and a free and fair trial would not have been possible.[1]
A trial court sentenced sub-inspectors Hindveer Singh and Mahesh Mishra, as well as constables Pradeep Kumar, Pushpender Kumar, and Haripal Singh, to ten years in prison on March 14, 2019, after they were convicted under Section 304 (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), among other sections.[2]
Inspector Kunwar Pal Singh received a three-year jail term. Due to a lack of evidence, the Court acquitted sub-inspector, Vinod Kuma Pandey. The High Court has now affirmed the lower court’s decision after reviewing the case and the facts on record.
It also denied Sonu’s father’s request to change the convictions from Section 304 (death by negligence) to Section 302 (murder) of the IPC.
[1] BAR AND BENCH, https://www.barandbench.com/news/litigation/delhi-high-court-upholds-conviction-up-police-officials-custodial-death (last visited on 26th June, 2023).
[2] ETV BHARAT, https://www.etvbharat.com/english/state/delhi/family-of-delhi-woman-who-died-due-to-electrocution-demands-strict-action/na20230626225714340340287 (last visited on 26th June, 2023).
written by- satyanshu sharma intern under legal vidhiya
