By IANS
Cuttack : A youth who had been arrested on a murder charge and jailed for almost nine years after being acquitted will receive a Rs.800,000 compensation from the Orissa government.
A division bench of the Orissa High Court comprising Chief Justice A.K. Ganguly and Justice Indrajit Mohanty Monday directed the state government to pay compensation to Pratap Naik, a resident of Ghimuhani village in the western district of Boudh.
Naik was arrested on a charge of murder when he was only 14. He was convicted in the case by a Sessions Court in Phulbani in 1989.
He moved the high court against the judgement and was acquitted in October 1994.
However, the boy was not released for almost nine years after his acquittal, reportedly because the court order did not reach the jail authorities. After a legal battle, Naik was released in July 2003.
Prabir Kumar Das, a lawyer and social activist, had filed a public interest petition in the high court seeking a direction to the state government to pay adequate compensation to Naik.
The division bench ordered the state government to deposit the compensation amount in Naik’s name in a nationalised bank in the form of a fixed deposit for a period of 10 years.
It said Naik would be allowed to withdraw 75 percent of the interest earned on the amount for his personal expenses on a monthly basis. At the end of 10 years, he would be at liberty to withdraw the full amount.