Patna: The Patna high court has asked the Bhojpur DM and SP to appear, either in person or through videoconferencing, on June 30 and explain the circumstances surrounding the alleged custodial torture and disappearance of a juvenile who has been missing for nearly 10 months.A division bench of justices Rajeev Ranjan Prasad and Kumar Manish passed the order while hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by Gauri Shankar Ram seeking the production of his minor son, Sanoj Kumar.The court also summoned the SHO of Bihiya police station and the excise inspector in charge of the Jagdishpur subdivision with relevant records to assist the court during the next hearing.According to the petition, Sanoj was allegedly picked up by excise personnel on Aug 13 last year and has remained untraceable since then. The petitioner has sought an independent investigation by a specialised agency, including the possibility of a CBI probe.Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Mithilesh Kumar Rai informed the court that excise personnel from Jagdishpur allegedly detained Sanoj from a locality in Bihiya. He claimed CCTV footage captured the juvenile being assaulted before being taken away.The petitioner subsequently lodged an FIR at Bihiya police station against personnel of the excise department, alleging that they assaulted his son and removed him to an unknown location.Taking note of the allegations and the continued disappearance of the juvenile, the court sought responses from the senior district and police officials and summoned the officers directly connected with the case.The petition has also named the then Jagdishpur SDPO, who was recently booked in connection with an alleged fake encounter case in Bhojpur, as a respondent.
