KL Report
SRINAGAR
For the first time in the history of Jammu and Kashmir, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed against an incumbent Chief Judicial Magistrate in High Court Jammu on Monday, wherein the petitioner has alleged that judicial officer had employed a minor as domestic help in violation of Child Labor Act, 1986 three years back and the same child has gone missing in ‘mysterious’ circumstances.
The PIL has been filed by Child Rights Activist Deepika Singh Rajawat, a resident of Rehari Chungi, Jammu in which she has sought the constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the mysterious missing of 15 years old boy namely Rafiq Choudhary of Ragura, Nagrota, who is missing since 12-04-2015 from the residence of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Rajouri Mehmood Chodhri of Bathindhi, Jammu, who had employed him as domestic help in violation of Child Labor Act, 1986 three years back.
The PIL says that appropriate legal action be also initiated and recommended against the erring Judicial Officer for employing minor Rafiq Ahmed as his domestic help.
The petitioner, according to CNS, has submitted that, “On 10 May 2015 in the morning hours she got a phone call from a reliable source about the mysterious missing of a child namely Rafiq Ahmed Aged 15 years resident of Village Ragura, Nagrota, Tehsil and District Jammu who was employed as domestic help by Chief Judicial Magistrate, Rajouri, Mehmood Choudhary R/o Bathindhi, Jammu in violation of Child Labor Act, 1986 three years before when he was only 12.
The petitioner after locating the parents of the child rushed to their Village Ragura at the outskirts of Jammu near ASCOMS Sidhra, Jammu and the poor parents informed her that since 12-04-2015 their child is missing from the residence of the Judicial Officer and the Police has miserably failed to locate the missing child and the SDPO East Rafiq Manhas categorically told them that go wherever you want to go including Chief Minister or any other influential person nothing will be done in this case.
The parents further disclosed that their ward was working in the residence of the said Judicial Officer as a domestic help for the last three years and the said Judge had promised initially to send him to the School and later to employ him suitably by using his contacts. They further divulged that the said Judge and his wife have refused to share the details of their missing son and have closed their doors for them and in fact have used unparliamentarily language against them and have further threatened to deal with them since he is a Judicial Officer.
The PIL reads, “the parents of the minor apprehend that their ward may not have been eliminated as his whereabouts are not traceable for last 29 days and the Police is sleeping over the matter and despite requesting the Police to interrogate the PSO of the Judge namely Noor whose conduct appears to be suspicious the Police preferred to remain loath in its approach and the petitioner looking into the magnitude of the plight of poor parents having no influence preferred to approach this Court so that appropriate directions are issued to the Police to investigate the matter uninfluenced by any outside pressure.”
The petitioner submits adding that since there is direct involvement of a Judicial Officer in the matter as he employed a minor of 12 years as domestic help there is every possibility of investigation getting derailed and influenced as such the indulgence of this Court is sought.
“Even otherwise the Police is duty bound as per the Judgment of the Apex Court to seek requisite permission from the High Court to proceed against the Judicial Officer and according to petitioner’s knowledge no such permission has been applied so far by the concerned Police Agency (Police Post, Narwal, Jammu falling under Police Station, Bahu Fort, Jammu.)”
The petitioner has submitted that in this case no action has been initiated by the Police Agency for the last 29 days solely for the reason that parents are poor and the alleged accused are influential and in a position to abuse the process of law.
“Appropriate directions are also warranted for initiating disciplinary proceedings against CJM, Rajouri for violating the mandate of Child Labor Act, 1986 so that a strong message goes to the society at large that no one is above law.”
The petitioner has appealed High Court to kindly direct the Director General of Police, J&K to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising of officers having impeccable integrity so that the mysterious disappearance of the minor is probed with utmost promptitude and in the proposed SIT the name of the SDPO East should be excluded for his biased approach in the matter.
High Court will take a final call on the said PIL on Tuesday May 12, 2015.
