Jharkhand: The Jharkhand High Court has directed the Secretary, Department of Home, Prison and Disaster Management, Government of Jharkhand, to file a personal affidavit regarding the number of custodial deaths and whether the fact of each death was brought to the notice of the concerned Magistrates for initiation of an enquiry.
Hearing a PIL seeking inquiry into custodial death cases from 2018, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajesh Shankar issued comprehensive directions to ensure accountability in such cases.
The court was hearing W.P. (PIL) No. 1218 of 2022, filed by Md. Mumtaz Ansari, represented by Advocate Md. Shadab Ansari, while the State was represented by Mr. Sachin Kumar, AAG-II.
Specifically, the court directed: “The Secretary, Department of Home, Prison and Disaster Management, Government of Jharkhand, is directed to file his personal affidavit with regard to the number of cases of custodial deaths, whether in prison or in judicial custody, from the year 2018 onwards, and also to state whether the fact of each death was brought to the notice of the Magistrate so as to enable an enquiry under Section 176(1-A) of the Cr.P.C. or Section 196(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.”
The court emphasized the importance of mandatory enquiry procedures in custodial death cases, underscoring compliance with both the Code of Criminal Procedure and the newly enacted Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
A strict timeline has been set for compliance, with the affidavit to be filed within four weeks. The matter has been listed for further hearing on 25 September 2025.
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