The Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has strongly condemned the treatment of a physically challenged man who was forced to undress and filmed while in police custody. The commission called the act cruel and a clear violation of the right to life.
The HHRC has ordered the Haryana Home Department to pay the man ₹50,000 as compensation. It also said this amount should be recovered from the two police officials involved in this incident.
The man, a chartered accountant from Faridabad, was arrested in May 2021 in a criminal case filed by his wife. In his complaint to the commission, he said that while in custody at Saran police station, he was stripped, photographed, and filmed in a semi-naked state. These pictures were later shared on social media.
He said the incident left him deeply traumatised and humiliated in public. Describing the experience as “a living death,” he shared that the mental pain still haunts him and has pushed him into severe depression.
In its order dated July 16, the Full Bench of the Haryana Human Rights Commission, which includes Chairperson Justice Lalit Batra and members Kuldip Jain and Deep Bhatia, said that an impartial investigation by the commission's own team confirmed the man’s allegations.
The probe found that two police officials, an assistant sub-inspector and a constable, did, in fact, forced the man to undress while he was in custody.
The commission said such cruel and degrading treatment, especially of a person with a disability, is completely unacceptable in any civilised society.
"This incident challenges the very spirit of constitutional values and the notion of human dignity. No individual, regardless of the accusations against them, deserves to be subjected to such humiliation and public exposure. This act is a direct violation of the right to life and personal liberty enshrined under Article 21 of the Constitution," the order said.
The commission said that, according to the inquiry report by its Director of Investigation, the incident was confirmed. On May 25, 2021, while the man was locked up in police custody, his brother-in-law was allowed to take photographs and record a video of him in a semi-nude state.
"The said images and video footage were later circulated on social media, further compounding the complainant's trauma, exposing him to public ridicule and causing deep psychological harm. The act of allowing civilians to capture visuals of a detainee, particularly in a compromised and vulnerable state, reflects a complete breakdown of custodial protocol and constitutes a direct violation of the complainant's right to privacy and dignity," it added.
A police station is meant to be a safe and controlled place. The commission said that no outsider should ever be allowed to take photos or videos of anyone in custody.
"In doing so, police not only failed in their duty to protect the person in their custody, but actively enabled the public dissemination of humiliating content, resulting in irreversible reputational and emotional damage to the complainant," it said.
The HHRC said the man has been deeply affected by the incident. He continues to suffer from emotional trauma, shame, and depression. This mental pain, they said, was caused while he was in police custody.
"The psychological consequences arising from being stripped in police custody are long lasting and amount to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, entitling the complainant to judicial protection, redressal and appropriate compensation under constitutional and human rights law," the order read.
Puneet Arora, Protocol and Information and Public Relations Officer at the HHRC, said the commission has directed the Haryana Home Department to pay ₹50,000 as compensation to the victim. He added that this amount will be recovered equally from the two police officials found guilty.
"This compensation is not intended to represent the full measure of the harm suffered by the complainant, but is awarded as a symbolic acknowledgement of the violation of his human rights and human dignity," the order stated.
"Police custody must not turn into... torture and shame. This order sends a clear message that the system will not tolerate custodial abuse or the misuse of power," Arora said.
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