Video of toddler with dead mother moves Patna high court
PATNA: The Patna high court Thursday took suo motu cognizance of reports on the viral heart-rending video showing a two-and-a-half-year-old child trying to wake up her dead mother by pulling the makeshift shroud at a railway station in Muzaffarpur and issued notices to Centre, Bihar and the Railways. The incident had happened on Monday.
“This warrants intervention by us in exercise of our jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India,” said the bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice S Kumar.
Describing the incident as “rather shocking and unfortunate”, the bench requested advocate Ashish Giri to assist the court as amicus curiae. The bench also asked additional advocate general SD Yadav to ascertain from the standing counsel for the state of Bihar in the Supreme Court, as to whether the apex court had taken cognizance of the incident or not. It posted the matter for 2.15 pm Thursday.
In the afternoon session, Yadav said no information could be ascertained from the standing counsel in the apex court or the solicitor general of India. He, however, told the court that deceased was mentally unstable and had died a natural death during the course of her journey from Surat (Gujarat) and it was reported to Railway authorities by her sister and brother-in-law Md Wazir. “The deceased, who had been deserted by her husband, had only one child,” he said.
Yadav said that after recording Wazir’s statement, the woman’s body was allowed to be taken home. “No autopsy was conducted and no FIR registered. The district administration provided an ambulance up to the place of destination. The orphaned child is in safe custody of the sister of the deceased,” he said, adding that his statements were based on instructions so received and the recorded statement of Md Wazir.
Awaiting instructions from the standing counsel in the SC, the bench fixed June 3 as the next date of hearing.
“Let complete facts be made known to the Court, on the personal affidavit of the concerned principal secretaries, before the next date,” it said.
› This warrants intervention by us in exercise of our jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.
SANJAY KAROL , Chief Justice, Patna HC