JUDGMENT

B.P. DAS, J. — The petitioner has filed this writ petition with a prayer to direct the State and its functionaries to pay her compensation for the death of her husband-Pitambar Pradhan in police custody.

2. The brief facts leading to the writ petition are as follows :-

The deceased Bhalu @ Pitambar Pradhan, husband of the present petitioner, was arrested by the Investigating Officer on 31.1.2003 in connection with Mahanga Police Station Case No.12 of 2003 and was detained in police hazat without being forwarded to the local Magistrate. On 1.2.2003 at about 2 p.m., the Officer-in-Charge of Salipur Police Station, Trinath Mishra, and the Circle Inspector, Keshab Mohapatra came to the village of the petitioner (Bhakuda) and assured her to release her husband on bail if she would come to the police station with the land re¬cord. On such assurance, the petitioner along with the Ward Mem¬ber, Sudhir Mishra came to the police station by a police vehi¬cle and found her husband dead inside the police hazat. Thereaf¬ter, the police officials forced the petitioner and the Ward Member to put their signatures on some documents and on some blank papers and shifted the dead-body to Cutta