The Madras High Court Bench here has dismissed a writ appeal filed by a Sub-Inspector of Police who was imposed with a punishment of compulsory retirement from service for having turned hostile during the trial in a case registered against ten police officers including a retired Superintendent of Police Solai Muthiah on charges of burning to death Bhaskaran alias ‘Vedigundu' Bhaskaran in 1999.
A Division Bench of Justices Chitra Venkataraman and R. Karuppiah held that they do not find any reason to interfere with the punishment imposed on the Sub-Inspector who was accused of acting in a manner unbecoming of a public servant by turning hostile before a court of law despite being a crucial prosecution witness in the case investigated by the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department here.
The judges pointed out that the appellant N. Ramasubbu had originally joined the police department as a Grade-I constable in April 1974. He was promoted as a Head Constable in July 1982 and thereafter as a Sub-Inspector in May 1995.
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He served at the K.Pudur police station in December 1999 when a case under the Explosive Substances Act was registered against Vedigundu Bhaskaran.
The petitioner was part of a police team that picked up Bhaskaran from Iyer Bungalow here. Thereafter, the accused died under mysterious circumstances and a case was registered against 10 police officials under Section 364 (kidnapping), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code on charges of misusing their powers and burning the dead body in order to conceal evidence.
The petitioner, who had initially given a statement to the CB-CID against the police officials, allegedly turned a volte-face during trial and pleaded ignorance of certain crucial facts.
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Departmental enquiry
Hence, a departmental enquiry was initiated against him and ultimately he was retired from service compulsorily on April 4, 2005 by the then Commissioner of Police, Madurai City.
Immediately, he challenged the punishment through a writ petition. But it ended up being dismissed by a single judge on October 17, 2007 on the ground that the petitioner's act had led to an embarrassment to the CB-CID which was probing the case besides questioning the credibility of the investigation.
“Ought not to have turned hostile”
The judge also said that an official witness ought not to have turned hostile.
Thereafter, the petitioner approached the Director General of Police in February 2008 seeking his indulgence in reducing the punishment. But the DGP rejected the plea considering the gravity of the delinquency.
He was of the view that the punishment imposed was not excessive.
Therefore, left with no other choice, the petitioner filed the present writ appeal in 2009.