SC to Lay Down Law on Compensation for Wrongful Conviction After Acquitted Death-Row Prisoners Move Court

The petitioners have sought compensation for years of wrongful incarceration and the destruction of their lives and families.

The Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta has requested the Attorney General for India (AGI) R. Venkataramani or Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to assist the Court in examining whether such individuals are constitutionally entitled to compensation under Article 21 for violation of their right to life and personal liberty.

“Issue notice, returnable on November 24, 2025. We would request the learned Attorney General or learned Solicitor General to assist this Court in these matters,” the Bench directed, asking the Registry to inform both law officers within a week.

The lead petitioner, Ramkirat Munilal Goud, spent 12 years in prison, six of them on death row, before being acquitted by the Supreme Court in May 2025. His conviction, the Court had then held, was the result of a “flawed and tainted investigation” by the Maharashtra Police.

The writ petition, filed under Article 32, contends that Goud’s wrongful conviction and incarceration amounted to a grave violation of his fundamental rights. “The petitioner was falsely accused, illegally arrested, and subjected to a tainted investigation and unfair prosecution. His life, reputation, and family have been destroyed,” the plea states.

Goud was convicted in March 2019 for murder and rape under IPC sections 302, 363, 376(2)(i), 201 and under the POCSO Act, with the Bombay High Court confirming his death sentence in November 2021. In acquitting him earlier this year, a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court had found that police officials fabricated evidence, suppressed forensic reports, and created false witnesses “because a sensational case was not being solved.”

Goud’s plea details how his family was reduced to destitution during his incarceration. His wife mortgaged their land and jewellery to pay for legal expenses, while his two elder children dropped out of school. Since his release, Goud has been struggling to rebuild his life, surviving on irregular daily-wage work.

The second petitioner, Kattavellai, who was sentenced to death in Tamil Nadu, was acquitted after the Supreme Court noted the absence of credible evidence and observed that India needs a law for compensating wrongful incarceration.

The third petitioner, Sanjay from Uttar Pradesh, was acquitted in a similar case involving the death of a minor girl after the Court held that “there cannot be a moral conviction in law.”

All three pleas rely on the Law Commission’s 277th Report (2018) recommending a statutory framework for compensating victims of wrongful prosecution. They seek recognition of a public law remedy against the State for miscarriage of justice, arguing that mere acquittal cannot undo the violation of dignity, liberty, and livelihood.

Case Title: Ramkirat Munilal Goud v. State of Maharashtra and connected matters

Hearing Date: October 28, 2025