HC acquits woman convicted in 2004 LWE encounter case

In a powerful indictment of mechanical criminal prosecution, the Jharkhand High Court has acquitted a woman who spent more than seven years behind bars after being convicted in a 2004 anti-Naxal operation, observing that she appeared to have been prosecuted “only for the reason that she happens to be the wife of an extremist.”

Setting aside the conviction nearly two decades after the encounter, the bench of Justice Anubha Rawat Choudhary held that mere presence at the spot of an encounter with a one-and-a-half-year-old child in her lap and her marital relationship with an alleged extremist could never be sufficient to sustain a criminal conviction.

The court delivered stinging observations against the prosecution and the trial court, noting that no specific overt act was ever attributed to Pramila Devi, no incriminating weapon was proved to have been recovered from her possession, and there was no evidence whatsoever that she was an active member of any extremist organisation. It held that the prosecution’s case rested on suspicion rather than legally admissible evidence.

The judgment also criticised the trial court for concluding that Pramila Devi was an active extremist despite the absence of supporting material. The High Court observed that the lower court failed to appreciate that her presence at the place of occurrence alone could not justify conviction on serious criminal charges.

The case arose from a search-and-combing operation conducted by police and CRPF personnel in Gumla district on January 11, 2004, following an alleged Maoist attack on Bishunpur police station. Acting on intelligence, security forces raided Ninar village, where they came under heavy firing from suspected extremists.

After a 15–20-minute exchange of fire, two alleged Maoists were killed, while others reportedly escaped. Police claimed to have recovered arms, ammunition, explosives, communication equipment, and Maoist literature from the site.

Pramila Devi and another woman were apprehended during the operation.

Police alleged that Pramila was the wife of People’s War Group sub-zonal commander Pratul Bhuiyan alias Randhir ji and accused her of being part of the extremist squad. She was subsequently convicted on charges including attempt to murder, assault on public servants, and offences under the Arms Act and the Criminal Law Amendment Act.

Nearly 22 years later, the High Court held that while the encounter itself was undisputed, the prosecution had failed to establish Pramila Devi’s individual role in any criminal act. The court noted that witnesses consistently stated she was carrying her young daughter when she was apprehended and that no reliable evidence connected her to the alleged offences.

Although Pramila had already completed over seven years of imprisonment and was released in 2011 after serving her sentence and paying the fine, the High Court, on July 6, had quashed her conviction and sentence, holding that the case deserved acquittal.

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