The Jharkhand High Court has demanded an update on the case of a missing minor girl from Gumla, threatening a CBI investigation if the state government fails to provide significant progress within two weeks.
Jharkhand High Court on Monday set a two-week deadline for the state government to furnish information on the whereabouts of a missing minor girl from Gumla, and cautioned that the case may be handed over to the CBI if no concrete progress is made.
A division bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Sanjay Prasad was hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by Chandramuni Urain, whose six-year-old daughter has been missing since September 2018.
The court observed that despite seven years of investigation, police have not been able to trace the victim and questioned the Gumla SP on the current status of the probe, expressing concern over the "tardy pace" of probe.
Earlier, the court was informed that a special investigating team was formed to find the girl, which had gone to Delhi to locate her.
However, despite trying their best, the SIT has not been able to locate her as yet.
Pictures of the victim had been circulated and uploaded on various portals by police, but to no avail.
The court was also informed that in the course of the investigation, police were successful in finding nine other missing children from different parts of the state.
The HC in another matter pertaining to a missing girl from Bokaro has passed strict orders directing the government and police to ensure that the victim is traced.