SC summons CS, DGP in Muzaffarpur government children home rape case

PATNA: The Supreme Court on Monday rapped Bihar police and summoned DGP for failing to arrest former social welfare minister Kumari Manju Verma who is traceless and evading arrest almost from a month in connection with the recovery of illegal ammunition from her husband Chandrashekar Verma’s residence in Begusarai.
Not only DGP has been summoned, but the division bench of Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta, while hearing the Muzaffarpur government children home rape case, also summoned the chief secretary to explain that what action has been taken in connection with 14 other children homes where also sexual and physical abuses of inmates took place like of Muzaffarpur according to social audit report of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS).

Both the officers would have to appear before the division bench to reply over the respected issues during next hearing scheduled to take place on November 27.

“Fantastic! cabinet minister (Manju Verma) on the run, fantastic. How could it happen that the cabinet minister is absconding and nobody knows where she is. You realise the seriousness of the issue that the cabinet minister is not traceable. It’s too much,” observed Justice Lokur, as quoted in agency reports.

Altogether 50 live cartridges, including 25 of prohibited bores, were recovered by from Manju’s husband residence at Sripur village under Cheria Bariyarpur police station area in Begusarai on during a raid by a CBI team, investigating the children home rape case, on August 17. An FIR was also lodged against the Manju and her husband in this connection.

However, police did not take action against the due even after Patna high court rejected their bail petitions. Manju was forced to resign from her post on August 8 after her husband’s name cropped up for a close connection with prime accused Brajesh Thakur in the case. Her husband surrendered only after SC’s rapping.

Counsel Fauzia Shakil, representing petitioner Nivedita Jha before the apex court, while talking to TOI over the phone after Monday’s hearing, said that DGP was summoned as the bench was furious that a former cabinet minister was yet not arrested.

“The Chief Secretary was summoned after I submitted before court that TISS report, which was submitted to Bihar government in March this year, mentioned about sexual and physical abuse of inmates in altogether 15 children home while till now action was taken just against Muzaffarpur home ,” Shakil said adding court has now widened its ambit of monitoring.