The Jharkhand High Court on Tuesday directed the state government to furnish an updated status report on the investigation into the disappearance of a six-year-old girl from Gumla who has been missing since 2019.
A division bench comprising Justices Rongon Mukhopadhyay and Pradeep Kumar Srivastava passed the order while hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by the child’s mother, Chandramuni Urain. She had moved the high court on September 4 this year, alleging that her daughter could have fallen victim to human trafficking.
Earlier, the court had directed the Gumla superintendent of police (SP) to personally appear in the matter. Complying with the order, the SP appeared before the bench on Tuesday and submitted the case diary. The officer also informed the court that a special investigation team (SIT) has now been constituted to pursue the case.
The bench fixed November 11 as the next date of hearing.
According to the petitioner, an FIR was registered in 2019 after the child went missing. However, no significant action was taken by the local police to trace her. Dissatisfied with the pace of investigation, the mother approached the high court seeking intervention.
