Delhi Police find missing girl in days after UP police fail for months

The Supreme Court has pulled up the Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police over its failure to find a teen girl who went missing nearly two months ago. The UP Police had sought more time to locate the girl, who was traced in two days by the Delhi Police after the apex court transferred the case earlier this week. The 13-year-old girl’s mother had approached the Supreme Court after she went missing from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh on July 8. The court on Wednesday directed the New Delhi Police Commissioner Rakesh Asthana to oversee the investigation and asked the UP Police to hand over the investigation records.

On Friday, Additional Solicitor General Rupinder Singh Suri, appearing for Delhi Police, informed the court that Delhi Police had traced both the girl and her kidnapper to Kolkata, West Bengal.

A three judge bench of Justices AM Khanwilkar, Hrishikesh Roy and CT Ravikumar asked the Delhi Police to hand over the girl to the mother after necessary formalities, NDTV reported.

The court said the case was “certainly a reflection of the state of UP Police. It did not go for so long and they wanted two months’ further time, without realising seriousness of the matter and the urgency involved.”

The bench observed that it is “a very sensitive matter” and every minute is “precious”.

After the counsel appearing for UP asked the bench as to whether the state or Delhi Police would conduct further investigation, the court said it will decide after Delhi Police files a compliance report in the case.

The court also asked the Delhi Police to take follow up steps and place before it medical reports and other relevant evidence.

The mother, who works as a domestic help in Delhi, said her daughter had been kidnapped from a wedding in Gorakhpur.