19-Year-Old girl dies mysteriously in Jharkhand remand home; NHRC seeks report from Govt

The NHRC took suo motu cognisance of a media report regarding the death of the 19-year-old female inmate on May 2 under allegedly suspicious circumstances. The cause of her death is yet to be ascertained.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a report within two weeks from the Jharkhand government and the district police chief over the death of a 19-year-old woman inmate at a remand home in the Charki Pahadi area of Deoghar district earlier this month, an official said.

The NHRC took suo motu cognisance of a media report regarding the death of the 19-year-old female inmate on May 2 under allegedly suspicious circumstances. The cause of her death is yet to be ascertained.

The Commission observed that the contents of the media report, if true, raise a serious issue of human rights violations.

Accordingly, it issued notices to the Chief Secretary of the Government of Jharkhand and the Superintendent of Police, Deoghar, seeking a detailed report on the matter within two weeks.

According to the media report published on May 4, when the inmate’s condition suddenly deteriorated, the remand home staff rushed her to Deoghar Sadar Hospital, where she died during treatment.

Reportedly, five inmates of the remand home have died since January 1, 2026, raising serious questions about the institution’s security and healthcare arrangements, the statement said.

In a separate case, the Commission also took suo motu cognisance of a media report stating that two sanitation workers died while cleaning a sewer at the Puri Pranayam Society in Greater Faridabad, Haryana, on May 2.

According to the report, the workers entered a manhole on the directions of the estate manager of the building without being provided protective gear or gas masks.

The Commission observed that the contents of the report, if true, indicate a serious violation of human rights.

The NHRC has therefore issued notices to the Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation and the Commissioner of Police, Faridabad, Haryana, seeking a detailed report within two weeks. The report is expected to include the status of the investigation and details of compensation paid to the next of kin of the deceased workers.

While issuing the notices, the Commission expressed concern that despite guidelines issued by the Supreme Court and NHRC advisories emphasising mechanised sewer cleaning and adequate safety gear for sanitation workers, such incidents continue to occur frequently across the country.