Bihar State Human Rights Commission office

Patna, June 8: The Bihar State Human Rights Commission (BSHRC) today directed the state government to pay a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to one Naresh Prasad Yadav who had to spend 85 days in jail owing to faulty investigation by Patna police.

While passing the order, BSHRC chairman Justice S.N. Jha observed that it was open to the government to recover the compensation amount from the officials concerned in accordance with law.

The commission also directed the government so submit compliance report with six weeks.

Apart from compensation, BSHRC directed the Patna senior superintendent of police (SSP) to take the on- going departmental proceedings against the offici- als concerned to their logical end by awarding suitable punishment to them in accordance with the law.

The SSP has been dire- cted to submit the compli- ance report within three months.

“While initiation of departmental proceedings may be the proper course of action so far as the erring officials are concerned, the appli- cant should be compensated for his unwarranted detention. In terms of Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the liberty of a person cannot be curtailed save in accord- ance with law. The deten- tion of the applicant being totally unjustified and without authority of law, it is a fit case for awarding compensation,” reads the SHRC observation.

Officials who have been found guilty of being part of faulty investigations in the case are sub-inspectors Mohd Akram Ansari and Harikesh Pandey who were posted at Masaurhi police station of Patna when the incident took place.

The incident dates back to 2008, when Yadav was arrested in a case lodged with Masaurhi police station only because of his name. According to the FIR lodged in this case, another Naresh Kumar Yadav, whose father’s name was Arjun Yadav, had been made accused.

Another Naresh Kumar Yadav, son of Moti Prasad Yadav, was nabbed when he went to the police station to get his son’s application for financial assistance for higher studies under Mukhyamantri Rahat Kosh Yojana verified.

Police, without verifying his identity, took the wrong Naresh into custody. Peeved over the police action, the victim approached BSHRC in 2009 and commission, in its order dated October 8, 2009, directed the Patna rural SP to make an inquiry and submit report.

The rural SP, in his report, found the allegations levelled against junior police officials to be true after which the commission directed the Patna SSP to submit report about the actions, which were apparently warranted against the officials concerned instrumental in arresting the applicant.

While Mohd Akram Ansari arrested the person, sub-inspector Harikesh Pandey finally submitted the chargesheet after taking over the investigation from the former.

After realising its mistake, the police obtained permission from the court and chargesheet was filed against the actual culprit.

While police completed these formalities, he remained in jail till March 3, 2009, without committing any crime.