Army officer missing for 25 years: SC asks govt to keep mother informed about efforts to trace him

A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and JB Pardiwala noted the petition has been moved by the mother of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee who wants the government to take some steps to trace her son.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Centre to apprise the 83-year-old mother of an Army officer, missing in action and said to be lodged in a Pakistan jail for over 25 years, every three months about the steps taken to trace him.

A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and JB Pardiwala noted the petition has been moved by the mother of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee who wants the government to take some steps to trace her son. "We impress upon the Union of India to take appropriate steps to trace the whereabouts of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee and apprise his mother on a quarterly basis about the steps taken," the bench said.

It noted the submission of additional solicitor general KM Nataraj that efforts are being made through diplomatic and other channels to trace the officer the claims of whose presence in a Pakistani jail Islamabad has denied. The bench also referred to a Note Verbale dated March 8, 2021 to which were annexed several Notes Verbale issued by the High Commission of India in Pakistan and a list of 83 missing Indian defence personnel with a request to look for them and ensure their early release and repatriation.

Justice Pardiwala said had it been an ambush and the entire platoon had come under attack the situation could be understood. However, in this case, only two members of a platoon had gone missing and the rest returned. "The rest, who have returned back to the base, must have known something about what happened. You try to find out from them. At least she should know the status of her son, the bench told Nataraj.

On May 12, the top court had asked the Centre to file an updated status report about the steps taken to trace Captain Bhattacharjee on the plea of his mother. In its recent affidavit, the Centre said there were 83 missing defence personnel, including 62 Prisoners of the War of 1965 and 1971, whose release and repatriation India has been seeking from Pakistan through diplomatic and other channels available.

The government, through the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), filed the affidavit on the woman's plea that also sought a direction to the Centre for taking immediate steps for the repatriation of her son. The plea says the petitioner had received information that Sanjit Bhattacharjee, who was commissioned as an officer of Gorkha Rifles Regiment of the Indian Army in August 1992, was lodged in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat jail.

The petitioner said her family was informed in April 1997 that her son, who had gone for patrolling at night on the international border in Gujarat's Rann of Kutch, was apprehended by Pakistani authorities. The list of 83 defence personnel includes four Prisoners of War who had gone missing in 1965. While most others are PoW from the 1971 war, 21 listed are defence personnel missing and suspected captured from 1996 to 2010.

The Centre in its affidavit said, It is respectfully submitted that the government of India has been pursuing the case of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee regularly through diplomatic and other available channels. "The High Commission of India in Islamabad has been regularly taking up the matter with the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs for ascertaining the whereabouts and early release and repatriation of missing defence personnel believed to be in Pakistan's custody," it said.

The affidavit said the name of captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee appears in the list of missing personnel shared with Pakistan through various Notes Verbale issued by the High Commission of India. "However, the government of Pakistan has not acknowledged the presence of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee in its custody till date," it noted. "The government of India will continue to raise the issue with the government of Pakistan, requesting it to respond on the status of Captain Sanjit Bhattacharjee," it added. (PTI)