BHUBANESWAR: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has asked the Ministry of Home Affairs to submit a report on the actions taken to find prisoner of war (PoW) Anand Patri from the state languishing in a Pakistan jail.
The apex human rights panel has sought the report from the Union Home secretary within four weeks in response to a petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer and rights activist Radhakanta Tripathy.
A native of Bhadrak district, Anand, who served as a sepoy in the Bengal Defence Regiment, had gone missing during the India-Pakistan war of 1965. His son Bidyadhar Patri came to know about his father through a newspaper publication in 2003 and since then he has been knocking every door for help but in vain.Tripathy had moved the human rights commission seeking immediate intervention into the matter. Acting on the petition, the NHRC had earlier directed the Home Ministry to take immediate steps to trace the missing jawan.
“Anand’s family members have made several requests to the government authorities to trace him. They have not been paid any legal dues since then. It is shocking that the government is not taking any interest to trace him,” Tripathy said and demanded adequate compensation. Bidyadhar has also appealed to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene into the matter. Meanwhile, inspector-in-charge of Dhamnagar police station has submitted a report on the missing case of Patri to the Zilla Sainik Board.
“Patri had participated in the Indo-China war in 1962 and Indo-Pak war in 1965. But after the 1965 war there is no trace of him. He was serving as a sepoy in the Indian Army and no compensation has been provided to his family so far,” the report stated.