Bhagalpur: Inspector-general, Bhagalpur, Sushil Singh Khopde on Saturday said police will minutely examine if officers under the scanner of Naugachhia court had any role in the break-in and arson at the sub-divisional court last week.

Unidentified persons had last Sunday broke open judges' chambers in the Naugachhia sub-divisional court and destroyed several documents of important cases, including cases against cops. Two persons - dhaba owner and labourer living outside the court campus - have been arrested but local residents claim they had been made scapegoats.

"They were arrested to save errant cops who were involved in destroying evidence against them in cases pending in the court," a source at the sub-divisional court said.

At least two such case reports involving cops were destroyed in the fire. Khopde, addressing the first of his weekly news meets as ordered by the director-general of police, said: "Two persons have been arrested in the Naugachhia court case based on scientific evidence, but the police will investigate if cops are involved in the loot and damage to important case records."

In May last year, additional chief judicial magistrate, Saharsa, Saroj Kirti informed the Naugachhia police on the phone that criminals had entered her in-laws' home in the township and assaulted them. In the FIR, court sources said, however, said the police named Saroj and her husband as accused.

"The judicial officer from the Dalit community was eight-month pregnant at the time and was subjected to mental harassment. Three months later, the police lifted the case against her on supervision but the court of ACJM-I, Naugachhia, ordered for a case to be registered against the errant cops under ST/SC Act. The case had been pending in the court the "papers were among those ransacked and gutted in the fire on June 17 night", the source said.

Another case pending in the court of ACJM-II was one against the then Naugachhia superintendent of police and station house officer for assaulting retired schoolteacher Meera Kumari and locking her up along with some of her family members last month.

Meera, also from the Dailt community, alleged that the police had assaulted her after taking her neighbour's side in a land dispute.

The court of ACJM-II ordered some officers in the rank of sub-inspector and additional sub-inspector of police to pay Rs 2,000 to each of the complainants injured by the police. But only ASI Mahendra Singh paid Rs 6,000 to three injured persons while the others have not yet obeyed the court's order, and also failed to appear before court. Papers related to this case too were also damaged.

"The police will minutely examine all the points. Since it is a very important case, not a single person involved will be spared," Khopde said on Saturday.