The Bombay High Court has rapped the Mumbai Police for its laxity and insensitivity in dealing with cases of missing children.
A Bench of Justices S.C. Dharmadhikari and Bharati Dangre observed that it was “unfortunate” that parents of missing children were being forced to approach the courts for help. This, the Bench said, meant the police were not doing enough.
The Bench said, “In a city like Mumbai, several children are exploited after they are removed from the lawful custody of their parents. These children can be forcibly involved in several illegal activities. The investigating machinery must be able to assess the situation for itself and take corrective steps.”
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The Bench observed, “This only indicates that the persons who are working in the police force are either inefficient or insensitive.”
The observations came while the Bench was hearing a petition filed by a city resident in January this year. As per the plea, the petitioner’s minor daughter went missing nearly 10 months ago and a police complaint was registered. The police, however, have failed to trace the girl so far.
The police told the court that the petitioner’s husband had abandoned her last year, moved to Uttar Pradesh, and married another woman. They claimed that it was likely that he had taken his daughter with him. In an affidavit submitted before the court, the police said officers were sent to U.P. to interrogate the husband but he had left for the Middle East, and could not be contacted.
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The Bench said, “We are hardly impressed by this report [affidavit]. For all we know, the investigating officer is clueless. There are several ways to involve a child in illegal activities: to force him or her to work in a factory, or some industry, or even as a domestic help in the country or abroad.”
The Bench said such illegal activities could be happening in slums where the petitioner stayed and to solely indict the husband of the petitioner in the case showed a lack of proper investigation.