The Delhi High Court emphasized the importance of acting swiftly when a child goes missing. In a recent case involving a missing minor girl, the court stated that the first 24 hours are crucial for finding the child. The division bench, comprising Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma, pointed out that waiting for 24 hours before starting an inquiry is not acceptable. They referred to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and directed all police stations to immediately begin investigating cases of missing children without any delay.
The High Court’s directive came after hearing arguments from the Delhi police’s standing counsel. They also decided to transfer the current case to the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (Crime Branch) of Delhi Police. This unit will conduct a thorough investigation under the supervision of a senior officer.
The bench ordered the Delhi Police Commissioner to ensure that all police stations follow these instructions promptly. They mandated that inquiries into missing children must begin as soon as a complaint is received, without waiting for 24 hours.
The court also required the Delhi Police to submit a Status Report on the investigation within one week. The next hearing for this case is scheduled for July 16. The court’s directions were issued in response to a Habeas Corpus petition filed by the father of a minor girl who went missing in February 2024.
According to the petitioner, his daughter disappeared on February 19, 2024, at around 10:00 a.m. He immediately went to Nangloi Police Station to file a complaint. However, the police asked him to wait for 24 hours, assuming the girl might return home on her own.
The petitioner returned to the police station the next day, February 20, 2024, but instead of registering a kidnapping case, they filed a ‘missing person report’.
Advocate Manika Tripathy, along with Naveen K Saraswat and Rony John, represented the petitioner in court.
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