Beaten up by cop, Sonepat man to get Rs 20K relief

Geetanjali Gayatri

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 7

Holding a head constable guilty of beating up a Sonepat villager in a police station, the Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has ordered the state government to award Rs20,000 in compensation to the villager. The HHRC has suggested to the government to recover the money from the head constable.

In its order passed earlier this week, the HHRC said Mahender Singh, a resident of Bhora Rasulpur village in Sonepat district, had complained that he had sought police help in September 2016 to resolve a dispute with his brother, Subhash, fearing that it might escalate.

Subsequently, ASI Ramesh took Mahender and his brother to the police station in Ganaur, and went for patrol duty. Later that night, head constable Sushil Rawal came to the police station in an inebriated state. After inquiring from Mahender about the election to the post of sarpanch, the head constable began beating him up with a stick and an electric wire while abusing him in the name of his caste.

On receiving the complaint, HHRC chairman Justice SK Mittal (retd) and member Deep Bhatia had sought a report from the Sonepat Superintendent of Police. An inquiry was conducted into the allegations by DSP Om Prakash.

After the inquiry, the SP, in his report, stated that the head constable had shown “indiscipline and dereliction towards his duty” and a departmental inquiry had been initiated against him.

After completing all formalities, the SP awarded punishment of “censure” to the head constable and issued a show-cause notice as to why the compensation should not be recovered from him.

The HHRC order stated that the complainant produced photographs showing injury marks on his back and a copy of the medico-legal report. The HHRC also observed that the head constable had beaten up Mahender without any reason. His action was unjustified and a violation of human rights, it said.

The HHRC order added, “The state government pays a compensation of Rs20,000 to the complainant since the government is liable for the wrongs committed by its officers while discharging their duty.”

‘Dereliction of duty’

The Sonepat SP, in his report, stated that head constable Sushil Rawal had shown “indiscipline and dereliction towards his duty” and a departmental inquiry had been initiated against him.