Nilabati Behera alias Lalita Behera v. State of Orissa and Others

Suman Behera, about 22 years old, was taken into custody by the police in Orissa on 1 December 1987 in connection with a theft investigation. The next day his body, with multiple injuries, was found on a railway track. His mother's letter to the Supreme Court was treated as a writ petition under Article 32. The Court directed the District Judge, Sundergarh, to inquire into the death; he reported that the deceased had died of injuries inflicted while in police custody.

Accepting that finding, the Court held the State responsible for the death. A person in custody is entitled to the protection of Article 21, and the State, having taken him into custody, must account for his safety.

Compensation for the violation of fundamental rights is a remedy in public law, based on strict liability, distinct from and in addition to the remedy in private law for damages in tort. Sovereign immunity, recognised for tortious liability in Kasturilal, is confined to the sphere of private law and is no defence to a claim under Articles 32 and 226.

The Court explained Rudul Sah and the decisions that followed it as awards of compensation in this public law jurisdiction. Any amount awarded may be adjusted against compensation awarded for the same wrong in other proceedings.

In a separate concurring opinion, Dr. A.S. Anand J. described custodial death as perhaps one of the worst crimes in a civilised society governed by the rule of law, and called on courts to fashion new tools to give relief in public law.