In the 2015 custodial death case of undertrial prisoner Mohsin Khan, a Bhopal court on Monday delivered a major blow to the accused police officers and jail officials. The court of Additional Sessions Judge Preeti Salve dismissed the revision petitions filed by all accused, upholding the earlier order to register charges under Sections 302 (murder), 120-B (criminal conspiracy), and 201 (destruction of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.
The case pertains to the death of 24-year-old Mohsin Khan, a resident of Bhopal, who died during treatment at JAH Hospital in Gwalior on June 23, 2015. His death occurred under suspicious circumstances while he was in judicial custody.
Advocate Yawar Khan, representing Mohsin’s mother Seema Khan, stated that the case originated from a private complaint filed the same year. It was initially examined by Judge Virendra Yadav, and subsequently, Judicial Magistrate First Class Manish Mishra ordered registration of a murder case in August 2024. Arrest warrants were issued following this order.
According to the complaint, Mohsin was picked up from his home on June 3, 2015, by Crime Branch constables Murli, Dinesh Khajuria, and Chironji Lal for questioning. The family alleged that the police demanded a bribe of Rs 2 lakh for his release. When the demand was not met, Mohsin was booked in a false robbery case at TT Nagar police station, produced in court, and remanded to jail custody.
While in custody, the family alleged that Mohsin was subjected to brutal custodial torture, including electric shocks to his private parts—a claim later supported by medical evidence. The abuse reportedly continued even after his transfer to Bhopal Central Jail, where then jailor Alok Vajpayee allegedly failed to provide critical medical care. Notably, CCTV footage from the time of Mohsin’s jail admission was never submitted in court.
Further complicating the case, a doctor from Hamidia Hospital’s psychiatry department declared Mohsin mentally ill, despite evident physical injuries and no prior history of mental illness. He was subsequently referred to JAH Hospital in Gwalior, where he succumbed to his injuries.
The case saw repeated legal hurdles over the years. The Magistrate Court had ordered registration of murder and destruction of evidence charges on three previous occasions, each time returned by the Sessions Court for further review. It was only on the fourth occasion that the Magistrate’s order was upheld and summons were issued to all accused, including the jailor, then TT Nagar police station in-charge Manish Raj Singh Bhadoria, the Hamidia Hospital psychiatrist, three named constables from the Crime Branch, and two other unnamed personnel.
The court, in its strongly worded observations, described custodial torture leading to death as “a deep blot on society†and affirmed that state authorities must be held accountable when the fundamental rights of individuals are violated.
This ruling clears the path for further criminal proceedings and arrests, and reinforces the principle of accountability in custodial death cases—serving as a stern reminder of the rights of individuals under judicial custody.
