The Supreme Court directed the Centre to investigate if a nationwide network or state-specific groups are behind children going missing across India. The bench told Bhati, “Is it a pattern or just a random incident?”
The Supreme Court instructed the Centre to investigate whether there is a nationwide network or state-specific groups involved in incidents of children going missing across India.
A bench comprising Justices B. V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan emphasized the importance of determining whether these incidents follow a pattern or are merely random occurrences.
They directed the Centre to gather data from all states.
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, representing the Centre, reported that while some states have submitted their data on missing children and related prosecutions, approximately a dozen states have yet to provide this information.
She noted that a comprehensive analysis could only take place once the Union government receives complete data.
The bench told Bhati,
“We want to know whether there is a nationwide network or state-specific group behind these incidents where children go missing. Is it a pattern or just a random incident?”
The court also suggested interviewing rescued children to determine who might be responsible for these disappearances.
The bench criticized the states that have not submitted their data, indicating that it could impose severe measures if necessary.
Senior advocate Aparna Bhatt highlighted the Centre’s initiative and called for directives to be issued to all states for data submission. This discussion arose during a Public Interest Litigation filed by the NGO Guria Swayam Sevi Sansthan, which drew attention to the growing number of untraced children across various states.
Earlier, On December 9, the Supreme Court had previously directed the Centre to present six years’ worth of national data on missing children and to appoint a designated officer within the Union home ministry to ensure effective collaboration with states and Union Territories in compiling such information.
Earlier, the court had urged all states and Union Territories to assign dedicated nodal officers to manage missing children cases and ensure that relevant details are swiftly uploaded to a portal managed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
On November 18 of the previous year, the Supreme Court expressed concern over a report stating that a child goes missing in India every eight minutes, describing the situation as grave. It noted that the adoption process in India is complicated, urging the Centre to simplify the mechanism.
The court remarked that due to the stringent nature of the adoption process, it is often circumvented, leading people to resort to illegal means to acquire children.
It had also instructed the Centre to develop a dedicated online portal under the Home Ministry to aid in tracing missing children and investigating related cases.
The bench highlighted the lack of coordination among police authorities responsible for locating missing children in various states and Union Territories. It proposed that the portal could feature a dedicated officer from each state tasked with managing missing complaints and distributing information.
The NGO’s petition highlights unresolved cases of child abductions and disappearances, emphasizing the actions needed based on data available with the missing/found portal monitored by the Government of India. It referenced five cases from Uttar Pradesh last year involving the abduction and trafficking of minors through intermediaries to states like Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
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