RAIPUR: The Chhattisgarh High Court has sparked a glimmer of hope for a widow seeking justice decades after her husband was killed in an alleged fake police encounter in Jashpur.
Justice Naresh Kumar Chandravanshi directed the Jashpur District Collector to formally decide on a long-pending compensation application filed by Sanjho Bai.
The case dates back to an incident involving the late Ramnath Ram, killed by personnel from the Kansabel police station.
While authorities initially labelled Ramnath Ram a 'Naxalite', a subsequent inquiry exposed the killing as a 'fake encounter'.
The legal battle for accountability concluded on June 11, 2002, when a Sessions Court convicted the then-Station House Officer (SHO) HR Aharwat, under Section 304-I of the IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder).
Five other police personnel were also convicted for their roles in the incident under Sections 323/34 IPC (voluntarily cause hurt/ joint liability for crimes).
Despite the criminal convictions proving her husband's innocence and the illegal nature of his death, the petitioner’s efforts to secure financial redress remained unheard amidst bureaucratic delays.
Sanjho Bai submitted a formal application for compensation to the Jashpur collector on September 24 last year, yet the request remained undecided.
Represented by advocate Chandrasen Chouhan, the petitioner Sanjho Bai approached the High Court seeking a simple direction that the government be compelled to act on her pending request.
During the hearing, the counsel for the Chhattisgarh state raised no objections to the petitioner’s request for a timely decision.
Recognising the limited nature of the prayer, Justice Chandravanshi disposed of the writ petition without entering into the specific merits of the compensation amount. Notably, the court issued the timeline for resolution.
The petitioner must file a fresh copy of her application along with the court’s order to the collector within 15 days. The Jashpur collector is also mandated to decide on the compensation application within 45 days of receiving the order.