34-year wait for justice: Widow’s fight in 1992 ‘fake encounter’ case gets Chhattisgarh high court push

RAIPUR: The Chhattisgarh high court has directed the Jashpur collector to decide within 45 days on a long-pending compensation plea filed by Sanjho Bai, whose husband was killed in a 1992 police encounter later found to be fake.

The court disposed of her petition seeking a time-bound decision, allowing her to resubmit documents within 15 days. Earlier inquiries had cleared the victim of Naxal links and led to the conviction of involved policemen. The widow has sought Rs 1 crore compensation, a fair probe, and action against officials, alleging decades of injustice, harassment, and state inaction despite repeated representations. Justice Naresh Kumar Chandravanshi issued the directive on March 16 while disposing of a writ petition filed by the widow, a resident of Dhegurjor village in Jashpur.

The petitioner had approached the court seeking a time-bound decision on her representation dated 24 September 2024. The case dates back to 26 March 1992, when police personnel from Kansabel police station gunned down the petitioner’s husband, Ramnath Nagvanshi, in Dengur Jor village. While the police initially claimed Nagvanshi was a Naxalite, a subsequent inquiry revealed he had no involvement in such activities.

The findings led to the prosecution of the police team involved. On 11 June 2002, a sessions court convicted the then Station House Officer, H.R. Aharwat, under Section 304-I of the Indian Penal Code. Five other police personnel were convicted under Section 323/34 of the IPC. Following these convictions, Sanjho Bai moved an application before the Jashpur collector for compensation. The plea remained pending for years, leading to the current legal challenge. The High Court has granted the petitioner 15 days to submit a fresh copy of her application along with the court order to the district administration. The collector must decide on the matter within 45 days of receiving these documents. In her petition, the widow had alleged that her husband, Ramnath Nagvanshi, a social worker and vegetable trader, was killed in a police encounter, after being falsely labelled a Naxalite. She claims subsequent inquiries indicated he had no links to insurgent activities, making the killing unlawful. Despite repeated representations, no action or compensation has been provided. The petitioner demanded Rs 1 crore as compensation, a fair investigation into the alleged fake encounter, and accountability of the officials involved, asserting prolonged mental harassment and hardship caused by the state’s inaction.