JOIN USHeart rules the roost in missing cases: Agarwal
Stating that ‘love’ and all its trappings seem to be the leading factors in girls going missing, commissioner of police Sunil Agarwal said love was the factor that drove girls out of their houses.
He was addressing the participants of the two-day state-level seminar on ‘Missing girls and Women: Issues and implications’ organised under the aegis of Karnataka State Commission for Women and Centre for Study of Social Exclusion and Inclusive Policy, University of Mysore, at Rani Bahadur auditorium in Manasagangothri. The seminar was inaugurated by district in-charge minister S A Ramdas here on Monday.
The commissioner said cases of missing girls and women over the last couple of years were worrying. “About 102 girls went missing in 2009. All of them are under 18 years of age and the cases were booked in city. About 80 cases were traced. In 2010, 103 girls went missing and 77 were brought back home, and in 2011 it was 114 against 83 who returned,” he said.
On the other hand, 138 women above 18 years of age went missing in city in 2009 and only 11 were traced. This increased to 216 in 2010 with 158 traced and only 117 of 214 missing cases could be detected in 2011, he added.
While forced marriages and emotional problems were major contributing factors, lion’s share went to academic pressures and love affairs which prompted impulsive decisions; leaving home being one of them.
Referring to the Supreme Court order in 2002 as a sequel to a case in Delhi regarding the missing of a minor girl, Agarwal said unlike yesteryears, cases of missing girls and women is being dealt with very seriously with the issue even placed on par with serious crime like murder.
Women’s Commission chairperson C Manjula, delivered the keynote address. Over 300 participants comprising students, members of women’s organisations and teaching faculty are attending the seminar which is addressing various issues pertaining to women.