'Missing' BSF jawan Tej Bahadur Yadav's family files habeas corpus plea in Delhi HC

New Delhi: Even as the Border Security Force is conducting an inquiry against constable Tej Bahadur Yadav, his family on Thursday filed a habeas corpus plea in Delhi High Court on the grounds that they are unable to contact him.

Yadav had shot into limelight after he uploaded a video on Facebook alleging that sub-standard food was being served to BSF jawans posted in the forward areas of Jammu and Kashmir.

The social media post had triggered a huge controversy, leading to the BSF instituting an inquiry against him.

Two days back Yadav's wife Sharmila, her elder brother and ex-paramilitary association General Secretary Ranbir Singh met Border Security Force chief K K Sharma. The BSF DG assured the family that a "fair inquiry as per procedure" will be conducted in the case.

The BSF had recently rejected the voluntary retirement plea of Yadav.

The move by the country's largest border-guarding force had not been seen kindly by Yadav's family which had alleged that the trooper was being "threatened and tortured mentally".

Rejecting Yadav's plea under the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS), BSF said it has been "cancelled pending the Court of Inquiry (CoI) and finalisation of its recommendations".

"Cancellation of VRS was communicated to constable Yadav on January 30 evening only," BSF said in a statement while making it clear that he "has not been arrested" as alleged by the family.

Yadav's wife had claimed that her husband had called her and claimed that he was being threatened and harassed and that he has been put under arrest.

Officials in the force had said that as per the laid down procedures under a Court of Inquiry, all witnesses in a case are questioned by the probe team till the investigation is complete.

The trooper is also facing charges of indiscipline for uploading the social media post and also on various other counts and hence in such a case the privilege of granting a VRS to an employee is disallowed, they had said.

A video shot by Yadav in which he was complaining about the quality of food had gone viral last month triggering a flurry of reactions with the PMO also seeking a detailed factual report on it from the Union Home Ministry and BSF.

The ministry had informed PMO that BSF has maintained that there was no shortage of rations at any post and that security the personnel deployed along the borders never complained about food.

The border-guarding force had also come out with fresh guidelines for maintaining high quality of food for its personnel after the video went viral.

Yadav, wearing uniform and carrying a rifle in the video, claimed that while the government procures essentials for them, the higher-ups and officers "sell these off" in an "illegal" manner in the market and the personnel have to suffer.

He had also posted other videos in which he had claimed that the quality of food served was not good.

With PTI inputs