Siliguri, Sept. 13: Darjeeling police today deposited Rs 1.75 lakh with the court as compensation to a Siliguri woman whose husband had been run over by a police vehicle 10 years ago.

Sources in the second court of additional district and session’s judge said Narayan Sarkar, an employee of a travel agency, was mowed down by the vehicle of then deputy superintendent of police of Siliguri on Hill Cart Road on March 26, 2000.

“After the accident, his wife Ranu filed a motor accident case in the second court of the additional district and session’s judge against the superintendent of police of Darjeeling. On September 3, 2003, the court directed the superintendent of police to pay the widow a compensation of Rs 1.75 lakh in two months. The police were also told to pay an interest at the rate of 9 per cent per annum if the compensation was not given in two months,” said a court source.

The police, however, did not make the payment for more than seven years and on March 17 this year, the court ordered the attachment of the office articles of the additional superintendent of police, Siliguri, and the official vehicles of the inspectors-in-charge of Pradhannagar and Siliguri police stations.

An appeal filed against the attachment was also dismissed by Calcutta High Court. “Still, the SP did not pay the money and the writ of attachment issued by the court was recalled. The court said on August 23 that if the payment was not made by today (September 13), it would not only attach the property but might also refer the issue to Calcutta High Court to initiate contempt proceedings against the SP,” said the source.

Finally, the SP, through his lawyer Nripen Das, paid the court Rs 1.75 lakh. The court directed him to pay an additional amount of Rs 1.1 lakh as interest by October 4.

Sarkar’s son Sanjoy said: “Our loss was irreparable and we had to struggle for more than 10 years. The district legal aid forum members helped us a lot in this case.”