A trial court had in December 2006 awarded death penalty to Tyagi on finding him guilty of murder and torture of a man at Vivek Vihar Police Station lock-up on the night of August 24, 1987. Tyagi was the station in-charge at the time.

But the Division Bench of Justices Mukul Mudgal and P K Bhasin refused to ascribe the former ACP with any intention to murder the victim, Mahendra Kumar. The Bench reduced the main criminal charge against Tyagi from murder (IPC Section 302) to culpable homicide not amounting to murder (IPC Section 304-II).

Kumar was arrested for causing minor injuries to a couple and abusing policemen who tried to intervene.

“We are not able to favour the prosecution that the beatings were administered with the intention to cause death or with intention to cause such bodily injury as was likely to cause death,” the Bench held. “The intention of the accused was to teach a lesson to the deceased, who dared to hurt a policeman, by giving him severe beatings in the police station.”

The Bench also directed Tyagi to pay a compensation of Rs 4 lakh to Kumar’s mother Raj Kali. While he would pay Rs 2 lakh as fine, the court asked the Delhi Government to pay the remaining amount.