Supreme Court Directs Centre To Remind States, UTs To Submit Data On Missing Children

The petition highlights the plight of children who are victims of organised trafficking networks operating across multiple States.

A bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice KV Viswanathan passed the direction after Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati submitted that information from multiple states was still awaited.

The court noted that the States yet to provide data are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Manipur, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana and West Bengal. The Union Territories are Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry. The Union was directed to compile the data into a single chart and place it before the court.

“Therefore, we expect that the respondent-Union of India will issue strong reminders to these States and Union Territories so as to submit the data to them in order to enable them to compile the data available in a single chart and place it before this Court”, the Court ordered.

The petition alleges that young children from vulnerable families are kidnapped and sold to traffickers who operate through a well-organised inter-State network. It also refers to multiple FIRs filed across different States that indicate the scale of the racket.

On September 24, 2024, the court had directed the Union to coordinate with stakeholders and collect district-wise and year-wise data on missing children since 2020, the year the Crime Multi Agency Centre (Cri-MAC) was launched.

The data sought included the number of registered cases, recoveries made within the stipulated four-month period, the number of pending prosecutions, functioning of Anti-Human Trafficking Units (AHTUs), powers vested in these units under the law, and measures proposed in cases of delay or non-recovery.

The Ministry of Home Affairs, in its affidavit filed on September 23, 2024, had informed the court that advisories were issued to all States and Union Territories on June 25, 2013, addressing prevention, protection and prosecution aspects of trafficking.

It also stated that special financial assistance had been provided to upgrade or set up Anti-Human Trafficking Units in all districts and that a national-level communication platform, Cri-MAC, was launched in 2020 for real-time information sharing on trafficking crimes.

Case no. – Writ Petition (Criminal) No. 43/2024

Case Title – Guria Swayam Sevi Sansthan v. Union of India & Ors.

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