Delhi HC awards Rs 50K compensation to man illegally detained by police for half an hour
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court has awarded a compensation of Rs 50,000 to a man illegally detained by the city police in a lock-up for about half an hour, saying it was troubled by the way citizens were treated by officials whose conduct was "appalling".
To send out a "meaningful message", Justice Subramonium Prasad directed that the compensation shall be recovered from the salaries of the erring police officials.
The court observed that the authorities acted in a high-handed manner without respecting the petitioner's liberty or following due procedure of law as the petitioner was simply picked up from the spot and placed inside the lock-up for no rhyme or reason.
"The time spent in the lock-up by the Petitioner, even for a short while, cannot absolve the police officers who have deprived the Petitioner of his liberty without following the due procedure established by law," the court said in its order dated October 5.
"This court is of the opinion that a meaningful message must be sent to the authorities that police officers cannot be law unto themselves. In the facts of this case, even though the illegal detention of the Petitioner was only for about half an hour, this Court is inclined to grant compensation of Rs.50,000/- to the Petitioner, which shall be recovered from the salaries of Respondents No.4 and 5," it ordered.
The petitioner alleged that following a complaint regarding a fight between a lady and a vegetable seller, he was illegally detained in a lock-up without any formal arrest by the local police in September last year. He sought compensation for the violation of his personal liberty.
The court said it was undisputed that the petitioner was picked up from the spot without an FIR against him and placed in the lock-up which was against his right to personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
"This court is deeply troubled by the fact that the Petitioner was not even arrested. He was simply picked up from the spot, brought to the Police Station and placed inside the lock-up for no rhyme or reason. The highhanded way in which the Police authorities have acted, throwing to winds the constitutional and fundamental rights of a citizen, is appalling," the court observed.
" This Court is troubled at the way the citizens are being treated by the Police authorities who behave as if they are above the law," it said.
The court said the punishment of censure alone was not sufficient in the facts and circumstances of the case as it was not likely to have any effect on the career of the police officers and so would not be a sufficient deterrent.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
