Patna: The Patna high court has ordered a CBI probe into the disappearance of Sanoj Kumar, observing that the credibility of the state police was at stake as the investigation appeared compromised with excise officials allegedly involved in the case.A division bench of justices Rajeev Ranjan Prasad and Kumar Manish passed the order on Friday, Aug 7, while hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by Sanoj’s father, Gauri Shankar Ram. A copy of the order was made available on Sunday.Sanoj was allegedly picked up by Bihar excise officials on the evening of Aug 13, 2025, from Dharhara Musahar Toli under Bihiya police station in Bhojpur district. Around 6.30pm, his father received a call from him in which he said excise and police personnel had assaulted him and detained him on an allegation of consuming liquor in violation of the prohibition law.Gauri Shankar could not find his son at any excise office or police station and lodged an FIR with Bihiya police. Despite repeated efforts, Sanoj remained untraced, prompting his father to move the high court with a habeas corpus petition.The high court had summoned the Bhojpur SP and DM on June 24, following which the investigation intensified with arrests and forensic examination of cellphones. However, the probe remained inconclusive.The judges, in their 34-page order, said, “The very credibility of the state investigating agency is at stake. Their inaction in probing abduction case is writ large thus persuade us to agree with petitioner’s contention that entire investigation of abduction has been compromised by state police and suffers from bias because culprits involved are excise officials.”The court directed the CBI to interrogate all suspects, including police officers allegedly involved in the compromised investigation, and submit an action-taken report by Sept 11, when the matter will be heard further.
