Man Acquitted In 'False Case' Over Wife's Alleged Murder Moves Karnataka HC Seeking Enhancement In Compensation From ₹1 Lakh To ₹5 Crore

A man, who was wrongly framed by the police alleging that he murdered his wife, has now approached the Karnataka High Court seeking enhancement of compensation from Rs. 1 Lakh to Rs. 5 crore for the malicious proceedings against him. 

In April 2025, Session Judge Gururaj Somakkalavar acquitted the man, Suresh @ Kurubara Suresh, from offences charged under Section 302 of IPC and had directed the State to pay him a compensation of Rs 1 lakh for malicious proceedings initiated against him. The court had also directed registration of a complaint against a police inspector, Prakash. B.G., who had filed the false case claiming that Suresh had murdered his wife. 

Suresh has now approached the High Court seeking enhancement of compensation. Suresh has also sought filing a complaint against the police officials for offences under Section 229 [Punishment for false evidence] and Section 231 [fabricating false evidence] of the BNS 2023 and to direct the sessions court to take cognisance of the offences. He has also sought for removing the word "accused" from the judgment of the sessions court and instead replace it with the word "victim".

Case Background:

The police's case was that Suresh had assaulted and killed his wife on suspicion of infidelity. The police had alleged that Suresh took his wife to a canal, where he quarreled with her. It was alleged that Suresh took a club lying beside and assaulted his wife on the head, with the intention to kill her. It was alleged that he then hid his wife's body & the club used to hit the wife, in the bushes. The police had alleged that an unidentified body was found by an individual on the same day when Suresh had lodged a missing complaint of his wife, leading to the proceedings against him. 

During the trial, Suresh's counsel informed the court that Suresh's wife was alive. As per the court direction, she was produced before the court on the same day and identified by her relatives. 

Noting suspicion on the part of the police, the judge said that there was no prima facie evidence against Suresh and that he had been implicated in the case built on false evidence. The judge added that police had cleverly drafted the script of the investigation. Refusing to accept the investigation as merely 'faulty', the Court stated that the "scripting of story fabrication of the evidence and manufacturing of documents in the scripted story" was intentional and not a bonafide mistake.

Highlighting that the justice system was misused in this case, the judge had acquitted Suresh and directed the Superintendent of Police, Mysuru to initiate an investigation in respect of the unknown dead body found. The Court had also directed the State government to pay him a compensation of Rs 1 lakh for malicious proceedings initiated against him. The court also directed the Inspector General of Police (Mysuru Division) to initiate departmental inquiry against Prakash and three other police officials Jitendra Kumar, Prakash.M.Yattinamani, Mahesh.B.K, attached to the Bettadapura Police Station.

Appearance: Advocate KUMARA K G for Appellant.