Chattisgarh High Court
M. Varun vs State Of Chhattisgarh on 2 January, 2025
Author: Ramesh Sinha
Bench: Ramesh Sinha
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2025:CGHC:50-DB
NAFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
WPCR No. 380 of 2024
M. Varun S/o Late Shri M. Somesh Aged About 25 Years R/o Near Ganesh
Mandir, Railway Colony, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh
... Petitioner(s)
versus
1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through The Secretary, Department Of Home
Mantralaya, Mahanadi Bhawan, Nava Raipur, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh
2 - The Director General Of Police, Raipur, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh
3 - Inspector General Of Police Bilaspur Range, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur,
Chhattisgarh
4 - Superintendent Of Police Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh
5 - Chief Superintendent Of Police Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh
6 - Station House Officer Police Station Tarbahar, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur,
Chhattisgarh
7 - Sub Inspector Police Station Tarbahar, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur,
Chhattisgarh
8 - S. Bharat News Through Its Editor-In-Chief, Office Near Paramount School
Hemu Nagar, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, Email -
[email protected]
... Respondent(s)
VEDPRAKASH
DEWANGAN
Digitally signed by
(Cause title taken from Case Information System)
VEDPRAKASH
DEWANGAN
Date: 2025.01.07
08:10:08 +0530
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For Petitioner : Mr. Mayank Kumar, Advocate
For Respondents/State : Mr. Shaleen Singh Baghel, Dy. G.A.
Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice
Hon'ble Shri Ravindra Kumar Agrawal, Judge
Order on Board
Per Ramesh Sinha, C.J.
02/01/2025
1. The Petitioner has filed the instant writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India with the following reliefs:
"(i) The Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to issue an appropriate writ or directions to the respondent no.
1 to 4 to take appropriate legal action or disciplinary action against the liable police officers and police personnels of Police Station Tarbahar, Bilaspur.
(ii) The Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to issue an appropriate writ or directions for protection of the petitioner and his mother, thereby preventing any further abuse of process, by the respondent no. 5 to 7 and other liable police personnels of Police Station Tarbahar, Bilaspur.
(iii) That the Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to issue an appropriate writ or direction to impose necessary cost upon the respondent no 5 to 7 for causing harassment and humiliation to petitioner.
(iv) The Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to issue an appropriate writ or directions to the respondent state, taking note of suffering and humiliation suffered by the petitioner by granting a sum of Rs. 1,00,000/- (Rs. One Lakh only) towards compensation to the petitioner to be paid by the State of Chhattisgarh.
(v) The Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to issue an appropriate writ or directions to the respondent no. 8 to take down/remove the photographs in relation to the petitioner from their news portal published on 15.09.2024.
(vi) Any other relief which this Hon'ble Court deems fit and proper may also kindly be granted to the petitioner, in the interest of justice."
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2. The brief facts of the case are that the Petitioner is an accused in Crime No. 135 of 2023 registered at Police Station Tarbahar, District Bilaspur for the offence under Sections 147, 148, 149, 294, 506, 323, 325, 307/34 of IPC, Sections 25 and 27 of Arms Act and Sections 3(2)(v) and 3(2)(va) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and is facing trial of the criminal case pending before the learned Special Judge (Atrocities), Bilaspur. The Petitioner has been released on bail by learned Single Bench of this Court vide order dated 17.10.2023 passed in Criminal Appeal No. 1385 of 2023. After releasing on bail, he faced the police atrocities by the police authorities and he was forced to remain present in the police station regularly despite having no other criminal antecedents, apart from the Crime No. 135 of 2023. The Petitioner was compelled to sign the Gunda list, in which he was compelled to enter his name and he was put amongst other persons and took photographs. His fingerprints have also been taken by the police personnel in electronic search slip and they tried to show the Petitioner as the habitual offender and his name is shown in the Gunda list.
*******On 15.09.2024, the Petitioner received a web page of news portal S. Bharat News in his whatsapp from one of his friend, wherein his photo, which was taken by the police, has been published with a title "R;kSgkjksa ls igys dh xbZ xqaMs cnek'kksa dh /kM+idM+ " and inside the news portal, it has been published that in order to maintain the law and order situation in Bilaspur, the police has detained some of the criminals/Gundas for inquiry and strict action has been taken against them, so as to prevent from committing any crime during festival. The such action of the police 4 authorities is harassing and humiliating the Petitioner. The Petitioner belongs to a well-reputed family and himself is working as a Software Engineer in a Dubai-based firm and unfortunately, he has been falsely implicated in the offence of Crime No. 135 of 2023 registered at police station Tarbahar, Bilaspur. The news portal publication of 15.09.2024 has tarnished the reputation of the Petitioner and his entire family, which gives the acute depression and anxiety to his family members and has violated the dignity and personal liberty of the Petitioner guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India and therefore he claimed for deletion of such news items from the news portal and claiming compensation from the respondents.
3. The Respondents/State have filed their return in which they have submitted that, the complainant of the said Crime No. 135 of 2023 namely Naveen Goswami has made a complaint on 10.09.2024 before the Police Station Tarbahar, Bilaspur against the accused persons including the Petitioner that they used to threaten the complainant and his witnesses and pressurizing him to withdraw the complaint. On the complaint dated 10.09.2024 made by the complainant, an Istagasa No. 377 of 2024 was prepared against the accused persons including the Petitioner and has been produced before the City Magistrate, Bilaspur on 14.09.2024. Under the consequence of the above complaint and Istagasa, the Petitioner was called by the police on 14.09.2024 and has obtained his fingerprint in National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS). It is further submitted that the name of the Petitioner has not been recorded in the Gunda list as well as in the Surveillance register. The police has also not directed the news agencies to publish 5 the name or photographs of the Petitioner as the Gunda/Badmash of the district on 15.09.2024. But it is the Respondent No.8, who is the Journalist has published the name of Petitioner as Gunda with the aforesaid tag, therefore the petition does not have many merits and is liable to be dismissed.
4. Learned counsel for the Petitioner would submit that from the aforesaid publication of his name along with the tag of Gunda, his and his family's reputation is tarnished and the police authorities have not published any rebuttal if they have not published it in the news portal. The Respondent No. 8 on the instance of the police authorities, circulated the photograph of the Petitioner in the web portal, which caused insult and humiliation to the Petitioner. The action of the Respondent authorities as well as the Respondent No. 8 is offensive and therefore appropriate action against the Respondents may be taken and he may be suitably compensated.
5. The learned counsel for the State at the very outset would submit that the petitioner's name is not mentioned in the Gunda list as well as in the Surveillance list and he has been aggrieved by the action of Respondent No. 8, who has posted some photographs and circulated in the web portal and stated that there is no fault on the part of the State Agency in this regard. The learned counsel for the State also produced a copy of the entire list of persons of Gunda list and stated that in the return, inadvertently, incomplete list was annexed. Since the name of the Petitioner is not in the Gunda list or Surveillance register and the news in web portal have been published by the Respondent No. 8 who is a 6 Journalist, the present petition against the Respondents No. 1 to 7 may be dismissed.
6. We have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material available in the petition.
7. Considering the submissions made by the learned counsel for the parties, considering the fact that the name of the petitioner is not mentioned in the Gunda list/Surveillance register of Bilaspur and further submission that it is the Respondent No. 8 who is a Journalist and has published the news in web portal, we deem it proper to dispose of the present petition, because the Respondent authorities appears to be not at any fault at this stage. The name of the Petitioner is not in the Gunda list/Surveillance register of Bilaspur. He is an accused in the crime No. 135 of 2023 registered at Police Station Tarbahar, District Bilaspur and facing trial of the criminal case and also there is a complaint against him that he along with other co-accused persons threatened the complainant and witnesses, Istagasa has been submitted before the City Magistrate, Bilaspur. Accordingly, the present petition is disposed of, leaving it open to the Petitioner, if he is aggrieved by any further action of the Respondents, he may challenge it in appropriate proceeding.
8. With the aforesaid observation, the present petition is disposed of.
Sd/- Sd/-
(Ravindra Kumar Agrawal) (Ramesh Sinha)
Judge Chief Justice
ved