New Delhi | July 21, 2025

In a rare and powerful intervention, the Supreme Court of India has awarded ₹50 lakh compensation to a Jammu & Kashmir police constable who was subjected to brutal custodial torture at the hands of his own department. The top court has also directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to launch a full-fledged criminal probe against the officials involved.

 

 

Constable Khursheed Ahmad Chauhan, who served in the Jammu & Kashmir police, became a victim of inhumane treatment in February 2023. He was illegally detained, reportedly tortured, and later admitted to hospital with serious injuries, allegedly after being forced to harm himself while in custody.

 

While Chauhan was initially charged under Section 309 of IPC (attempt to commit suicide), the Supreme Court not only quashed that FIR but turned the tables entirely—calling the incident a gross violation of human dignity and a “betrayal by the system meant to protect.”

 

 

A bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta delivered a landmark ruling:

• ₹50 lakh compensation to be paid to Chauhan within 2 months by the J&K administration.

• Direction to the CBI to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe all officers involved in the custodial torture.

• Orders for arrest of key accused officials within 1 month, and the probe to be completed in 3 months.

• FIR against Chauhan quashed: The court made it clear that the law cannot be used to punish a victim trying to survive torture.

 

“The system failed him when he needed protection the most. He was stripped of dignity and justice but not anymore,” observed the bench during the pronouncement.

 

 

This judgment could become a watershed moment in India’s fight against custodial violence especially when the victim is a serving officer. The case also challenges the normalised silence within the uniformed services, where speaking out against superiors often invites reprisal, not redress.

 

The Court’s intervention sends a clear message: even state power has limits, and no authority can override the Constitutional guarantee against torture.