9 Years On, Court Lets CBI End Search for JNU Student Najeeb

Nearly nine years after Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Najeeb Ahmed vanished from his hostel, a Delhi court on Monday brought the official investigation to a close.

- Arnabjit Sur

NEW DELHI: The court accepted the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) 2018 closure report, observing that CBI had pursued "all plausible leads" and noting the possibility that Najeeb may have voluntarily left the campus.

While disposing of the protest petition filed by Najeeb's mother, Fatima Nafees, additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM) Jyoti Maheshwari noted: "This court is of the considered opinion that CBI has investigated all plausible avenues available in the case."

The decision, which comes nearly a decade after Najeeb's disappearance in October 2016, for now marks the end of a case that had gripped national attention, sparked protests across campuses, and prompted a protracted legal battle by Fatima.