E-Paper
Shocked beyond words: Jharkhand HC raps state over custodial deaths
Shocked beyond words: Jharkhand HC raps state over custodial deaths
Ranchi, The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday expressed concern over custodial deaths in the state, saying the government had systematically violated mandatory legal provisions governing inquiries into these incidents and that it was "shocked beyond words" over the "deeply distressing picture of systemic non-compliance".
While hearing a public interest litigation, the court noted that of the 427 custodial deaths reported in Jharkhand between 2018 and 2025, executive magistrates conducted inquiries into 262 cases even as the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita mandated that these should be done by judicial magistrates.
The division bench comprising Justice M S Sonak and Justice Rajesh Shankar said, "On a perusal of data furnished by the state, and assuming that it reflects the entire and correct position, this court is shocked beyond words."
"While the respondents claim that magisterial inquiries were conducted in all 427 cases, their own figures betray a fundamental misunderstanding or a total disregard for the law... By their own admission, 262 inquiries were conducted by executive magistrates, even though the law unequivocally stripped the executive of this prerogative two decades ago," the court observed.
It described the situation as a "deeply distressing and shocking picture of systemic non-compliance," adding the state's conduct reflected a "total failure" in adhering to procedures specifically enacted by Parliament to ensure impartial investigation into custodial deaths.
This discrepancy not only reflects a systemic disregard for the law but also casts serious doubt on the state's veracity and diligence in maintaining these records, the court said.
It directed the principal district judges and the principal secretary of the department of home, prison and disaster management to submit a report within six months explaining the reasons for the failure to have at least 262 cases of custodial deaths enquired into by the judicial magistrates.
The bench also directed them to "identify the specific officers responsible for such lapses; and to show cause why this court should not recommend the initiation of departmental inquiries against the said officers."
The court criticised the state for adopting a "pick and choose" method by assigning certain cases to judicial Magistrates while diverting others to executive magistrates.
It is against the mandate of Parliament and has been discarded with impunity by the authorities of the state, the division bench said.
"The duty of care owed by the state to persons in its custody is strict and admits no exceptions," the bench held, observing that custodial deaths represent "a profound failure of the constitutional machinery".
The court further ordered that within two months, the home department must prepare a district-wise list of all custodial deaths since 2018 where inquiries were conducted by executive magistrates.
It ordered the chief secretary and the principal secretary of the Home Department to issue circulars within 30 days to all district magistrates and superintendents of police clarifying that jurisdiction for probe vests "solely and exclusively" with judicial magistrates.
The Bench directed the district victim compensation committees to suo motu consider compensation in cases where inquiries reveal custodial violence, negligence, or unnatural death, without forcing bereaved families into prolonged litigation.
"Compensation is not merely a civil remedy but a tool for constitutional remediation," it observed.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
