FIR delayed, family harassed, victim ignored: Bokaro teen’s remains found after HC steps in, 28 cops suspended

The court had also questioned why a relative of the victim, who was not an accused, was called to the police station and allegedly assaulted. It warned that any harm to the petitioner’s family would invite “personal accountability” of the Bokaro Superintendent of Police. The court then directed Jharkhand DGP Tadasha Mishra to investigate the matter.

Amid these developments, a fresh police team led by a DSP-level officer reopened the investigation. According to Bokaro SP Harvinder Singh, suspicion arose from the conduct of the main accused, Dinesh Mahto, and he was taken into custody. The family of the victim had named him owing to an alleged past relationship with the girl.

“During the interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed to the crime, revealing that the girl had been killed on the same day she went missing in July last year. Based on his disclosure, we recovered skeletal remains, along with clothes, hair, and the suspected murder weapon from a forested area behind a local college,” Singh said.

The SP said that although the accused had been questioned earlier, there was no “concrete verification” at the time, and despite multiple reviews of the case, no breakthrough had been achieved until fresh leads emerged recently.

“We have suspended all personnel posted at the local police station – 28 in total, ranging from constables to the officer-in-charge. The action was taken after findings suggested that the earlier investigation did not follow directions properly, weakened the case, and raised suspicion of attempts to benefit the accused,” he said.

‘Our lives have no value’

For the victim’s family, the recovery has brought both closure and anger. The deceased girl’s mother said the accused had been picked up earlier as well, but no action was taken. “That is why we had to approach the high court,” she said.

Demanding strict punishment for the accused, she added, “My daughter was so innocent and had no fault in this. She was just 18. We have no hope to fight against this corrupted system; we are a very tiny part of it. However, we will continue to fight and will not give up. We have now seen the reality of this system and powerful people. Our lives have no value for them.”

She also alleged that her family faced harassment during the investigation. “Instead of finding my daughter, how could they dare to physically harass us? One by one, our relatives were picked up and threatened,” she said, adding that the family would now pursue legal action against the police personnel as well.

These points were also raised by the high court, which noted instances of coercion, threats, and attempts to extract false statements from the victim’s relatives.

It further took note of allegations that the police were ‘pressurising’ relatives to give statements as dictated by them and threatening that “a false FIR will be lodged” if they failed to comply.

The case is scheduled for further hearing on April 15.