Widow gets relief for murder by cop

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has come to the help of a widow, mother of two girls, whose husband was shot dead by a cop under the pretext of vehicle checking, by directing the State government to pay her a compensation of Rs 5.5 lakh.Justice D Hariparanthaman gave a direction to this effect last week, while disposing of a writ petition from K Muthulakshmi. The compensation had to be paid with six per cent interest from June 13, 2007.According to petitioner, her husband Varadharajan, after retirement from the Army, was working as a driver in a private dairy farm. On October 19, 2005, when he was transporting milk cans from Ayanrajapatti to the customers at Vadamalapuram, his vehicle was stopped by M Suyambulingam, a sentry attached to Masarpatti police station in Virudhunagar district. When the police official asked him about the contents of the container, he said he was carrying milk. Even after seeing milk, the police officer asked him to come to the police station. When Varadharajan was moving towards his vehicle, the police official fired at him without any provocation and subsequently he succumbed to injuries on October 21, leaving behind petitioner and two daughters aged 19 and 15. The police registered a murder case against Suyambulingam. When she sought compensation, there was no response from the government, she added.The government submitted that criminal and departmental action had been ordered against Suyambulingam. The said police official was not authorized by the superior officials to check the vehicles and he acted on his own accord and hence the question of vicarious liability would not arise. Pointing out the report of the RDO, holding Suyambulingam responsible for the death of Varadharajan and the GO to take both criminal and departmental action, the judge said the government could not take a different view with regard to compensation. The government was liable to pay compensation, as the police official intercepted the vehicle during duty hours and under the guise of enquiry, Varadharajan was shot dead without any provocation, the judge said and fixed the compensation at Rs 5.5 lakh.