SC orders ₹25 lakh compensation for MP man jailed nearly 5 years beyond sentence
New Delhi: The Supreme Court directed the Madhya Pradesh government to pay ₹25 lakh in compensation to a man who spent over four years and seven months in prison beyond his lawful sentence on Monday.
The bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan further directed the Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority to undertake a countrywide jail survey to ensure that no other offenders stay behind bars after serving their sentence or being given bail.
The court had earlier described the prolonged incarceration of Sohan Singh, a rape convict, as “quite shocking.” According to a report by Hindustan Times, he was convicted in 2005. Singh was sentenced to life in prison. The Madhya Pradesh High Court later reduced his sentence to seven years in 2017, citing flaws in the prosecution's evidence. Eight years after the high court’s order he was released only on June 6, 2025.
State counsel later clarified that Singh had been on bail for part of the period, and the excess incarceration totaled nearly 4.7 years. The bench slammed the state for filing “misleading affidavits” that initially overstated the duration of wrongful imprisonment, stressing that such systemic failure violates fundamental rights.
Singh’s case came to light only after he petitioned the Supreme Court earlier this year. The court had since pressed the state to explain how such a miscarriage of justice occurred and to identify those responsible.
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BJP accuses Karnataka govt of 'failing' to prevent noise pollution caused by 'azaan'
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): Members of the Opposition BJP on Tuesday slammed the Karnataka government for not taking measures to prevent the alleged noise pollution caused by 'azaan', the Islamic call to prayer.
BJP MLC D S Arun raised the issue in the Legislative Council during the question hour, accusing the ruling Congress of "appeasement" by failing to take action against mosques that are violating the Supreme Court's directives.
Karnataka Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment Eshwar Khandre, responding to the question, said, as per the directives of the Supreme Court in sensitive zones, the noise level should not exceed 50 decibels during the day and 40 decibels at night, and in residential areas, 55 decibels during the day and 45 decibels at night.
In commercial areas, the noise should not exceed 65 decibels during the day, 55 at night, and in industrial areas, 75 during the day and at night 70 decibels, he said.
Pointing out that the Karnataka government had issued an order in 2022, assigning responsibility to a committee headed by a DySPs or ACPs for the effective implementation of the rules, the minister said when a complaint is received about noise pollution, the Pollution Control Board will inspect it and provide information about the decibel level to the police to take further action, including filing of criminal cases.
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"Not only during azaan, but also during bhajans held in temples and marriage events, among others, the violations happen. There is a need to spread awareness. The Supreme Court has ordered against bursting firecrackers, but it is being violated. Efforts will be made to implement the rules effectively," he said.
Several BJP MLAs, including Arun, Bharathi Shetty, among others, were not satisfied with the minister's reply. They took strong exception to it.
Arun noted that in the last three years, only 52 cases have been taken, and said there are clear violations by almost all mosques, but no action has been taken. "The decibels have in fact increased under this government. The government is giving protection to them."
Reacting to this, Khandre, calling it a "sensitive matter", said, "It is not right to politicise the issue. The law of this land is equal for everyone."
Hitting back, Arun asked, "Why is the matter sensitive? What is preventing you (the government) from implementing the Supreme Court directives?"
