Rajendra Prasad Sah vs The State of Bihar and Others

We have heard the petitioner in person. This is the second petition filed by the petitioner for seeking a writ in the nature of habeas corpus.

In this petition the petitioner has asked for production of his father, Bhubneshwar Sah, whom he has not seen since 1997, as per his statement, that is to say, almost ten years have expired since he has last seen him. He has placed on record a report of the Dy. Superintendent of Police, Munger dated 12.11.2003 revealing that said Bhubneshwar Sah had died in 1998 at his daughter Prema Devi''s house in Village Agrahan while he was staying with her.

The petitioner had another brother Naresh Sah about whose disappearance he had earlier filed Cr.W.J.C. No. 741/ 2007 alleging that his brother is not traceable since 1999. In the said petition also a reference has been made about death of Bhubneshwar Sah. In the proceeding of Cr.W.J.C. No. 741/2007, the Court has required presence of petitioner''s sister Prema Devi and she was interviewed in petitioner''s presence wherein she had stated that her father Bhubneshwar Sah had died in 1998 while he was residing with her and her father''s dead body was cremated at Village Agrahan. He has another brother Mahendra Sah, who according to the report of the Dy. Superintendent of Police had been the beneficiary of his father''s estate. He has been appointed in place of his father on compassionate ground. The appointment on compassionate ground has obviously been made by the State as a result of death of Bhubneshwar Sah.

All these indicate, apart from positive evidence of Prema Devi as a witness to the death of Bhubneshwar Sah, that any person, who in ordinary course should have heard of Bhubneshwar Sah has not heard, anything about his whereabouts for last more than seven years, under the Evidence Act also a presumption of his death can well be drawn. In these circumstances this petition of habeas corpus does not call for any further enquiry and the same is hereby dismissed.