THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.24761 OF 1995 DATED:07.11.2006 BETWEEN: Y.Maddaiah … Petitioner. And A.P.Social Welfare Residential Schools Society Rep., by its Secretary, Hyderabad. And others. … Respondents. THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION NO.24761 OF 1995 ORDER: This writ petition is filed seeking a writ of mandamus to declare the action of the respondents 1 and 2 in not taking disciplinary action against respondents No.3 and 4 who allegedly caused the death of one Anusuyamma, the daughter of the petitioner as illegal and void and for a direction to the first respondent to take disciplinary action against the respondents 3 and 4 for being responsible for the death of the said Anusuyama and also to pay appropriate compensation to the petitioner. The averments in the affidavit filed in support of the writ petition show that the petitioner is the father of one Anusuyamma, aged 14 years at the time of her death. The said Anusuyamma was admitted in 9th class in A.P. Social Welfare Residential Schools for Girls, Kurnool in pursuance of her selection in written test. The said Anusuyamma was admitted in the hostel run by the respondents at Kurnool. The said Ansuyamma died in the early hours of 4.9.1995 and that the news of her death was intimated by two persons claiming to be the teachers of the third respondent school, to the petitioner and his wife. The petitioner noticed injuries on knees and left temporal region on the body of his daughter. After autopsy, the police registered a case under Section 174 of Code of Criminal Procedure and First Information Report No.308 was issued on 4.9.1995 itself. It is alleged in the affidavit that the reason given out by the school authorities that Anusuyamma died of hanging is false. According to the petitioner the postmortem conducted on his daughter revealed sand particles all over limbs, below the knees and at her back giving rise to a suspicion that death was caused by excessive beating of his daughter by respondents No.3 and 4 and also the torture inflicted on her in the guise of punishment. On the basis of these averments, the petitioner sought for the above mentioned relief. In support of the writ petition, the petitioner filed photo copies of First Information Report, Postmortem report, Opinion of Doctor and requisition of Sub Inspector of Police, III Town Police Station ,Kurnool and the inquest report. On behalf of respondents separate counters are filed. Sri D.R.Garg, I.A.S., Secretary of the First Respondent filed a counter affidavit in which the averments in the affidavit filed in support of the writ petition were denied. It is alleged in the counter affidavit that following the death of Anusuyamma several Women Organizations demanded enquiry into the circumstances leading to her death and the deponent to the counter affidavit has visited the school in question on 10.9.1995 alongwith District Collector and Chairman of the District Social Welfare Residential Schools Society, Kurnool. He made formal enquiries. The Progressive Women’s Organisations and Students Organisations, at whose instance, the Secretary has visited the school, were invited to participate in the enquiry. According to him, his enquiry revealed the following aspects: “ i. In the morning hours of 4th September, 1995 kum.Y.Anusuyamma, deceased student of 9th class, had participated in the early morning exercises, had break fast alongwith other students. After the break fast when the school bell rang for assembly for prayer, it is reported that Kum.Y.Anusuyamma went inside the room and did not come back. Two other girls living in the same room had seen her inside the room while going for prayer and assumed that she might be staying back in the room for change of dress etc. Prayer started. It took about 20 mts., for prayer and other allied activities. After the prayer when some students entered the room in which Kum.Y.Anasuyamma was living they found that she was hanging from the fan with a bed sheet. The students immediately ran back and informed the teachers standing outside. The Principal, teachers the workers and students ran towards the room. The staff nurse and some others removed her from where she was hanging and brought her outside the school building and made her laid down. She was said to be alive at that time. The Principal immediately rushed out, obtained some vehicle from the nearby place and took the girl personally alongwith the staff nurse and other staff members to the Govt., Hospital. The girl was pronounced dead by the hospital authorities. ii. Immediately from the Hospital, the Principal is reported to have approached the nearest Police station and registered the information regarding the incident. iii. The room in which Kum.Y.Anasuyamma used to live and had committed suicide was locked and sealed by the representatives of the voluntary organizations earlier. This room was opened in the presence of the District Collector/Chairman, Joint Collector and the first respondent herein. All of us examined in detail the feasibility of committing suicide by actually re-enacting the scene by calling for a student of the same size and weight. By this experiment we all were convinced that suicide by hanging by the deceased was possible. iv. The trunk box of the deceased student which was also sealed by the representatives of the Women’s Organisation was opened in the presence of the District Collector/Chairman of the District Society, Joint Collector, the 1st respondent herein, including the representatives of the Women’s Organisations and also the father of the deceased girl. All the articles found in the trunk box were examined carefully. In the box, in the last layer, below the clothes, one paper was found, which the father of the deceased girl confirmed that it was written by the deceased student in her own handwriting. This hand writing was also matched with the hand writing in the other note books belonging to the deceased girl. The note was written in Telugu, purpose of the note was “ If on any morning, I am found dead, then my father, who works in Labour Department may be informed, so that he may take away my body. In case, if my father is not available, a lady relative who is living near Head quarters Hospital should be informed about my death, who in turn will inform my mother about my death.” No date was mentioned on this note. v. Sri V.Maddaiah, father of the deceased girl is reported to be working as Jr.Assistant in Labour Department of the State Government and got admitted his daughter in this school only about 1 ½ month before this incident by presumably producing a false income certificate otherwise the deceased girl kum.Anasuyamma was not eligible for admission into the A.P.S.W.Res.School. vi. From the ci5rcumstantial evidence as well as the information elicited during the enquiry, and also after going through the note found from the trunk box of the deceased girl, the first respondent formed the opinion that this is a clear case of suicide. During the course of enquiry, I did not come across any information which indicates any lapse, omission or commission on the part of the Principal or other staff members of the residential school or any other thing indicating towards homicide. In the opinion of the officials who conducted the enquiry, no guilt could be established against Smt.S.E.Vimala Kumari, Principal or Smt.Sreelaxmi, P.E.T. who are the respondents 3 and 4 herein. However, it is submitted that keeping in view of the popular sentiment and also in the public interest and also in the interest of school administration as stated above Smt.S.E.Vimala Kumari, Principal the 3rd respondent herein has been transferred and posted to the A.P.S.W.Res.School, Wyra in khammam Dist. And Smt.Sreelaxmi, P.E.T. was transferred and posted to A.P.S.W.Res.School, Jagannaikpur, E.G.District. Both of them have reported for duty in their respective places. All the above facts were brought to the kind notice of the Principal Secretary to Government, Social Welfare Department vide letter Rc.No.E2/17302/95, Dt.19.10.1995 who is also the Chairman of the respondent Society and 2nd respondent herein.” The Secretary in his counter affidavit further stated that on the representation made by the father of the petitioner, the Collector and District Magistrate, Kurnool ordered for exhumation of the body of the deceased and accordingly, re-postmortem of the body was conducted by Doctors of Gandhi Medical College and their conclusions are extracted in the counter affidavit, which are mentioned below: 1. The cause of death was hanging. The reason for the absence of clearly visible ligature mark was the use of soft material like the bed sheet as ligature material and the removal of the body from hanging position within minutes after the incident. 2. There is no reason to disbelieve the fact that the death of the deceased took place at about 8.00 AM on 4.9.1995. 3. This is a case of suicide unless otherwise proved to be the contrary. 4. The injury No.4, i.e., the swelling over left temporal region with underneath contusion, appears to have been added after the actual preparation and signing of the postmortem report. The sub-arachnoid hemorrhage present all around the brain surface as mentioned in the injury No.2 of the 1st Postmortem examination report is a doubtful finding as the brain was not removed from its natural position within the body. Sri Bharat Kumar, the learned counsel for the petitioner vehemently contends that the medical opinion given by the team of Doctors of Gandhi Medical College is in conflict with the earlier opinion given by the Doctor at the request of the Sub-Inspector of Police. It is his further contention that the subsequent postmortem by the team of doctors of Gandhi Medical College was not conducted at the request or on the demand of the petitioner. According to the learned counsel the subsequent postmortem is a fabricated one to exonerate the respondents from their responsibility for the death of Anusuyamma. I have given my earnest consideration to the contentions raised by the learned counsel for the petitioner. For the following reasons, I am not inclined to adjudicate this writ petition on merits: 1. That 11 long years have elapsed from the date of unfortunate incident and during this period certain events took place such as referral of the criminal case by the police on the ground that it is a case of suicide. 2. The pleas raised in the writ petition fall in the realm of severely disputed facts which require adjudication after considering the oral evidence of the parties and the expert evidence into the cause of death. 3. As regards compensation, no doubt in certain cases the constitutional Courts do exercise their jurisdiction to order for compensation. In most of these cases such power is exercised to give immediate relief to the victims and to enable them to approach the proper court of law for adjudication of their claim for compensation. Since 11 years have lapsed, I am of the considered view that such a course in this case is not appropriate. For the aforementioned reasons, the writ petition shall fail, but however, liberty is given to the petitioner to approach Civil Court, which, in my opinion, is competent to adjudicate all the disputed aspects of the case. The learned counsel pointed out that the suit is barred by limitation. Under Section 14 of the Limitation Act, the time taken in pursuing the litigation in a wrong forum is a ground for exclusion of period during which the litigation was pending before the wrong forum. I am sure, the petitioner can avail the said provision and the appropriate Court would consider the plea, in the event, such plea is raised by the petitioner. With the above observations, the writ petition is dismissed. No costs. ____________ 07.11.2006. Note: Registry is directed to furnish Copy of the order at the earliest. B/o. mdaa