Jharkhand woman still in detention centre despite court order. Now HC asks, ‘under what law?’

In 2018, a young woman from Jamtara was arrested for allegedly kidnapping a child. She was sentenced to two years in prison, which she was set to serve and complete by 2020. However, instead of being released, she was transferred to the Foreigners’ Holding Centre in Hazaribag, over 190 kilometers from her home. The authorities accused her of being a Bangladeshi national, and she remained there for several years.

In June 2025, the woman, along with two other detainees, allegedly escaped from the center and was apprehended at Dhanbad railway station the next day. They were charged with escaping from custody, but the Foreigners Act charge was dropped, and the woman was acquitted. Despite completing her sentence, she was still detained. The Jharkhand High Court questioned on October 1, "under what law is she still being detained?"

The woman alleged that she was sexually assaulted multiple times by a police constable, which caused her severe mental distress and forced her to escape. The woman's real name was not registered in the case records, and her father's name was different from what was recorded in her original documents. The case is currently under inquiry by the Hazaribag Superintendent of Police, and the Home Secretary of Jharkhand has been directed to appear before the court on October 5.