Purulia: After a 25-year-old legal battle, family of Budhan Sabar, who died in police custody in 1998, got justice.
The Purulia District Court on Monday sentenced the then OC of Barabazar Police Station Ashok Roy to 13 years of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000 in connection to the Budhan Sabar case. Roy, who was found guilty under two sections of the Indian Penal Code, have been sentenced to 8 years under one section and 5 years under another.
Budhan Sabar's family and West Bengal Shaar Kheria Welfare Association are happy with the court's verdict.
On February 10, 1998, Barabazar police arrested a youth named Budhu alias Budhan Sabar, a resident of Akarbaid village under the then Kenda police station, on the charge of theft. He was kept in police custody till February 12. On that day, when he was produced before the Purulia District Court, the judge ordered him to be in police custody for 5 days.
When he was next produced before the court, the judge sentenced him to imprisonment. On February 17, his wife Shyamali came to the Purulia District Correctional Center and learnt that Budhan's body was found hanging from the ceiling fan in the lockup.
According to jail authorities, Budhan had committed suicide. The police did the autopsy and buried his body in the village.
However, the West Bengal Sabar Kheria Welfare Association president and late writer Mahasweta Devi had also written a letter to the then Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court protesting this incident. Sabar's wife Shyamali also complained to the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Purulia District Court in this connection.
On the orders of Calcutta High Court Judge Ruma Pal, the second autopsy was conducted and advocate Pradeep Roy was appointed as a friend of the court.
Later, the investigation was handed over to the CBI. On February 19, 2001, the CBI issued a charge sheet against the then OC Ashok Roy and the then officer ASI Ajay Sen of Barabazar police station.
The then-Left Government challenged this order and appealed to the Chief Justice, who dismissed the plea. Charges were framed on September 22, 2003, following investigation.
As many as 89 people testified in this case. There were doctors and health workers from the Barabazar block primary health centre, as well as several officials from the Purulia district correctional facility, including correctional home staff and police.
