Plea in SC alleges custodial torture, sexual assault of minor by Gujarat Police; Seeks SIT/CBI probe
New Delhi: A writ petition has been filed in the Supreme Court alleging custodial torture and sexual assault of a 17-year-old boy by police personnel in Gujarat’s Botad district. The petition, moved under Article 32, seeks a court-monitored probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising officers outside the Gujarat cadre, or in the alternative, an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Advocate Rohin Bhatt, appearing for the petitioner, mentioned the matter before a bench of Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran. He submitted that the minor was illegally detained, tortured, and subjected to sexual assault in police custody. The counsel further requested the constitution of a medical board at AIIMS, New Delhi, given the boy’s critical medical condition.
According to the plea, the boy was picked up on suspicion of theft of gold and cash and was illegally confined from August 19 to August 28, 2025. During this period, he was allegedly beaten by four to six officers at the Botad Town Police Station and sexually assaulted. The petition highlights that he was not produced before the Juvenile Justice Board or a Magistrate within 24 hours, nor was a medical examination conducted at the time of arrest.
It was further alleged that the petitioner’s grandfather was also subjected to custodial torture after being detained on August 21, and released only on September 1. On the same day, the police informed the family that the minor required urgent medical attention. He was then shifted to Zydus Hospital in Ahmedabad, where he is currently undergoing dialysis due to kidney damage and remains in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
The plea raises concerns that the family was forced to sign documents under duress, falsely recording that the boy sustained injuries in a bicycle accident. It also states that while the minor was in the ICU, individuals claiming to be from the Magistrate’s office obtained his signatures on certain documents.
The petitioner has sought multiple reliefs, including registration of an FIR under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, POCSO Act, and Juvenile Justice Act, preservation of CCTV footage from the police station, immediate production of medical records, financial aid for treatment, compensation for custodial torture, and arrest of the errant police officers.
The matter has been listed for hearing on September 15.
The petition was drafted by Advocates Rohin Bhatt and Panistha Bhatt and filed through Advocate-on-Record Paras Nath Singh.
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23-year-old woman found dead at Delhi home; suicide suspected
New Delhi (PTI): A 23-year-old woman was found dead in her house in Delhi's Prem Nagar area, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, an official said on Tuesday.
The deceased, identified as Anjali Singh, was found motionless in her room on Monday by her sister and her neighbour.
Police said her father, Vinod Kumar Singh (51), told them that he and his wife were away at work at the time of the incident, while their son and the other daughter were also not at home at the time of the incident.
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According to the family, the room in which Anjali was found was locked from the inside. The door was later forcibly opened by a neighbour and her sister with the help of a crowbar.
Her body was found lying on the bed inside the room, police said.
Preliminary inquiry revealed that Anjali had allegedly hanged herself using a piece of cloth tied to the ceiling fan.
It is suspected that the noose eventually might have loosened or torn off, resulting in her being found lying on the bed.
Family members informed the police that Anjali was a final-year student of a librarian science course from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). About a week ago, her final-year examination results were declared, and she had failed, following which she had been under depression, they said.
The family has not raised any allegation of foul play, police said, adding that no suicide note or external injury marks were found on the body during the initial inspection.
Inquest proceedings have been initiated in the matter as per the law. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination to ascertain the exact cause of death, and further investigation is underway, police added.
