Allahabad HC sits on Gandhi Jayanti to hear habeas corpus plea on missing soldier

Source: theprint.in

New Delhi: A division bench of the Allahabad High Court sat on Gandhi Jayanti, which is a national holiday, to hear a habeas corpus petition for an Indian Army soldier who has been missing for over 14 months.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Govind Mathur and Justice Vivek Varma took up the matter after the former received a letter from the father of Sepoy Rajat Singh, the missing soldier.

This letter was treated as a habeas corpus petition.

According to the letter, while serving as Sepoy, 28 Punjab Regiment, Pithorgarh, Rajat was “illegally deputed” with Colonel (Retd.) A.K. Dubey in Bareilly and has been missing since 28 July 2018 from Head Quarters, UB Area, Officers Mess, Bareilly.

The soldier’s father, Updesh Singh, wrote in his letter that no adequate steps had been taken to locate Rajat. An FIR had been registered at Bareilly Cantonment police station on 30 July this year.

“No progress too has taken place in the matter,” noted the court order.

The court’s directions

During the hearing, additional government advocate Syed Ali Mortaza, representing the state of Uttar Pradesh, informed the court that the investigating officer (IO) in the case had requested the command officer of Bareilly military police to direct one Lance Naik Balwant Singh to report at the police station for necessary interrogation.

However, advocate Mortaza told the court that the IO did not receive any response.

The court then ordered the military police command officer of Bareilly Cantonment police station to provide it with all the necessary details on Rajat.

“Having considered the facts stated in the petition and the instructions availed by learned Additional Government Advocate, we deem it appropriate to call upon the Command Officer, Military Police, Police Station Cantt, Bareilly to provide all necessary details with regard to missing person Rajat Singh…” said the order.

The matter will next be heard on 14 October.