14-Year-Old Jailed For Allegedly Refusing Free Veggies To Patna Cops

Patna: The 14-year-old son of a vegetable vendor has been in Patna's Beur jail for three months after he allegedly refused to give free vegetables to the local policemen. The father claims he is a minor and has been kept illegally in jail. His Aadhaar document shows him to be 14 years old. The police claim he is 18 years old and was caught along with the members of a bike-lifter gang.

After the matter was reported by the local dailies, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has ordered an investigation. He has also demanded a report within 48 hours in the case, which is turning out to be one of the most embarrassing for the state police.

The Bihar police have often been accused of being hand-in-glove with liquor mafia in the state, despite strict instructions to implement the prohibition. Four years ago, Mr Kumar, in an effort to clean up the state police, had dismissed around 250 officers.

But this matter has been most embarrassing for the force in a long time, officials admitted off the record to NDTV.  

In a letter addressed to the Chief Minister, the boy's father said his son was picked up from his home by the police March 20. The desperate man came to know that he had been arrested more than 24 hours after he filed a complaint with the police.

But when he met his son in jail, the boy told him that he was picked up for refusing to part with his vegetables when he had gone out alone with the family cart the day before. The teen also alleged that he was beaten up badly and forced to sign on a blank sheet of paper.

His father admitted that he obliged the local police who were in the habit of demanding freebies. But the son, who was alone that day, was adamant in his refusal.

The boy said two other men were arrested along with him, but he had never seen them before.

When the matter was reported by the local media this morning, the Chief Minister ordered an inquiry and asked the state police chief to report back to him within the next 48 hours.