IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 921 OF 2003

   STATE OF HARYANA & ORS.                         Appellant (s)

                       VERSUS

   BALA DEVI                                       Respondent(s)

O R D E R

Respondent's husband, Randhir Singh, was an accused in a criminal case.

He was remanded to judicial custody on 25/10/1999 till 5/11/1999.  The remand was

thereafter extended.  While in judicial custody, he was ill and died on 14/11/1999.

2. The respondent filed a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. in the Punjab &

Haryana High Court alleging that her husband's death at Central Jail, Ambala was

under suspicious circumstances and sought a direction to the State and its authorities

to register an FIR against the erring Jail officials for causing her husband's death.

She also sought award  of  adequate compensation.   

........2.

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The High Court allowed the petition by its judgment dated 3/4/2002.  It recorded a

finding that the  deceased  Randhir  Singh was suffering from heart disease, that due

to a wrong diagnosis, he was treated for tuberculosis and as a consequence he died

due to heart disease.   The High Court held that the above amounted to criminal

negligence on the part of the prison officials.  The High Court was also of the view

that there was some attempt to cover up by the prison officials.  Consequently, the

High Court awarded a sum of Rupees Two lakhs as compensation to the widow and

her minor children.   

3. Feeling aggrieved, the State has filed this appeal by special leave.  We are

informed by the learned counsel that the amount awarded as compensation alongwith

interest thereon has already been disbursed to the widow and her minor children.   

4. We have heard the learned counsel and examined the matter. We find that

while  in  judicial  custody,  Randhir Singh was examined at Nehru Hospital,  PGI,

Chandigarh on 3/11/1999 and was provisionally  diagnised as suffering from  

.......3.

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Tuberculosis and given medicines and treatment for Tuberculosis.  Subsequently, he

died on 14/11/1999. The post mortem report stated that the cause of death could be

given only after receipt of the reports of the Chemical Examiner and Histopathologist.

The Chemical Examiner's Report showed that the death was not due to poisoning.

The histopathological examination revealed chronic ischeamic heart disease.  On that

basis Medical Officers gave  an  opinion  on  17/11/2001 that the possible cause of

death was chronic ischaemic heart disease and related complications.    The High

Court has held that the wrong diagnosis and failure to treat the deceased for heart

disease should be treated as criminal negligence on the part of the State of Haryana

and the Prison officials and therefore the widow of Randhir Singh was entitled to

compensation.

5. The deceased was in judicial custody for hardly three weeks.  We are of the

view that mere wrong diagnosis  and wrong treatment during the period when the

deceased was in judicial custody cannot be considered as a criminal negligence on the

part of the jail authorities. The deceased had been referred for medical  check-up  and

treatment at a  

.........4.

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reputed hospital.  He was given the advised treatment.  If ultimately he died and it is

thereafter found  that  he  died  of  heart disease,  it  cannot  be  said  that  there was

criminal negligence on the part of the Jail authorities.  The finding of the High Court

cannot be sustained.  

6. In view of  the  above,  we  allow this appeal and set aside the judgment of

the High Court.  But on the peculiar facts and circumstances, as the compensation

has already been disbursed to a poor widow and her children, we direct that the

amount disbursed shall not be recovered.

......................J. (R.V. RAVEENDRAN)        

......................J.     (Dr. MUKUNDAKAM SHARMA)

NEW DELHI; JUNE 25, 2008.