The Jharkhand High Court has directed a narco test for the main accused, Dinesh Mahto, in the case of the 18-year-old girl from Bokaro who has been missing for eight months. The court mandated that the test results be submitted within two weeks for the upcoming hearing. The bench, led by Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Deepak Roshan, expressed dissatisfaction with the police’s handling of the investigation.
The court criticized the Bokaro Superintendent of Police for delays and deficiencies in the case. It highlighted a 10-day delay in filing the FIR after the girl’s disappearance on July 27, 2025. Despite a general diary entry made the same day, the FIR was lodged only on August 4, 2025, a delay that the state counsel failed to justify. The Officer-in-Charge of Pindrajora Police Station was issued a show-cause notice for negligence.
Advocates representing the missing girl’s mother raised concerns about the police’s conduct and investigation procedures. The court was informed that in December 2025, there were leads suggesting the girl was in Pune. A suspect, Loknath Mahto, was apprehended by the police, but he escaped while being transported by train. The High Court cautioned against insensitivity and delays in such cases, citing a similar incident from 2020 in Bokaro.
The High Court had previously warned of potentially involving the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) if investigative shortcomings persist.
