MISSING CHILDREN - Law 4 India

By Divyanshu Jain

INTRODUCTION

Children are called the assets of the country. They are the future of the country and would take that country towards the path of the success.

In India there are many different problems exist like child labour, terrorism, corruption, dowry, etc. Missing children is one of them. Often this topic becomes the headline of the newspapers.

About 100,000 children missing reports are reported every year in India and about eight million around the world and many of them remain untraced. One child goes missing in every eight minutes in India.

CAUSES

There are many reasons behind the missing of children such as:

Kidnapping

It is done because of many reasons but the main cause is poverty and greed many people in India are below from poverty line and they need money so in greed of money they start doing crimes. And also because of rivalry and disputes they done this crime.

Abduction

Many people abduct children to extort money from their parents, ransom and for the use of sex trafficking, etc.

Voluntary

Sometimes, child voluntary leaves their home and go in some other states or somewhere else without informing their parents or guardians and runaways from the custody of parents, guardians, and institution.

Mental illness

Due to the mental illness child may forget that where they live and go somewhere else and not able to identify themselves also.

Human trafficking

The main reasons of human trafficking such as forced labour, committing crimes like theft, begging, move drugs here and there and for smuggling and many other illegal activities.

Religion

When child wants to convert their religion, and someone is stopping them, so they leave their home

Thrownaways

When parents, guardians or adults of the family told the children to stay away from the home or leave the home.

Blackmailing

Many people done kidnapping just for blackmailing so that they can get what they want.

And there are many more reasons of the missing of children.

PATTERN OF INVESTIGATION

When any child goes missing then the first step is police note that complaint and start searching and investigation, and if it remains untraced or does not come back within the reasonable time then they file a FIR.

On March 2, 2009, Delhi High Court had taken a Suo moto cognizance and held that Delhi Police should register all the complaints of missing children as FIR without any delay.

GUIDELINES OF SUPREME COURT

By many judgements and evaluating situations Supreme Court laid down some guidelines for the investigation of missing children

Quick enquiries from friends, coworkers, acquaintances, relatives, and others in the neighborhood and at the missing place of work/study.
All clues from the missing person’s papers and things should be checked as soon as possible.
Inquire about the whereabouts of extended family members, neighbors, and school teachers, as well as school friends.
Make the required inquiries to see whether there have been any previous occurrences or reports of family violence.
Contact the missing person’s most recent educational institutions’ principal, and students. If the missing is employed, the most recent employer and her coworkers at the place of employment should be contacted.
Publish images of the missing persons in the newspaper and broadcast them on television.
Photographs of a missing individual shall be widely distributed at all prominent outlets in the city/town/village in question, including railway stations, interstate bus stops, airports, regional passport offices, and border checkpoints, as well as through law enforcement officials. This should be done as soon as possible.

GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

Government rolls out a portal which is launched by Women and Child Development Ministry. It is a website which can report the complaint of the missing child and it can also keep the track of the efforts making in finding that child.

Women and Child Development Ministry done this project with the collaboration of Department of Electronics and Information Technology.

Website is http://www.khoyapaya.gov.in/mpp/home

Apart from this, India has several additional organizations who have attempted to develop sustainable platforms with IT and web-based solutions, where missing children’s information can be uploaded and shared, such as:

National Center for Missing Children (NCMC), on their website offers registration and search of missing children. Website is http://www.missingindiankids.com/

Tamil Nadu’s Missing Child Bureau (MCB), it provides the services related to the issue of missing children. Website is https://tn.nic.in/socialdefence/mcb.htm

RECOMMENDATIONS OF NHRC

National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was constituted on October 12, 1993. It is concerned with the problem of missing children.

NHRC constituted a committee on February 12, 2007, for the issue of missing children. This committee examine in depth, the issue of missing children and gives practical guidelines and appropriate recommendations and forwarded by the commission to the authorities and to the Government. It would help the authorities and the Government in finding the missing children.

NHRC urged that the issue of missing children be prioritized and asked for the establishment of a missing persons desk to track and document all cases of missing individuals at the police station. Report also recommended that to notify the National Commission for the Protection of Children’s Rights (NCPCR) within 24 hours after the incident.

NHRC underlined the importance of creating a National Tracking System that would include the grass-roots level in discovering and tracing missing children. Not only should missing child’s cases be reported as soon as possible, but of return, rescue/recovery cases also. All cases of minors being rescued from sites of exploitation, such as sexual exploitation and exploitative labour, should be entered into the NCRB database. On a regular and systematic basis, the database should be updated.

NHRC also stated that issue of missing children is not a cognizable offence. If a child has gone missing, it does not imply that a crime has occurred.

NHRC said that investigating team can work in collaboration with NGO’s also so that they can help and spread awareness among the children and can counsel them.

PROCEDURE ADOPTED BY NHRC

By writing to the Director Generals of Police and Commissioners of Police in all States and Union Territories across the country, it requested essential information. It demanded the report of the Committee set up by the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India to investigate claims of widespread sexual abuse, rape, and murder of children.

NHRC also empower personnel to communicate with the missing children’s parents, family members, and relatives.

SOLUTIONS

Delhi High Court gave instructions to set up a cell in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which would deal with only the issue of missing children, but due to many resources the desired results cannot achieved. So, it should be strengthened and should give all the required resources and powers, so that it can give the desired results.

By establishing the helpline number, it may reduce the issue of missing children and may help in tracing them in less time. Government may take initiative in setting up child helpline number and NGO may also take initiative in issuing of helpline number with the help of government.

REFERENCES