Delhi High Court asks Centre to respond to plea on ‘surge’ in missing person cases

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (February 11, 2026) asked the Centre, the Delhi Government and the police to respond to a petition on the “surge” in the number of missing persons in the city.

A Bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia listed the matter for hearing on February 18.

The petition, filed by an NGO, states that there is an “unprecedented crisis” in Delhi, with reports of more than 800 persons going missing in the first 15 days of this year.

“The petitioner highlights that the alarming rate of 800 disappearances in a fortnight points toward a flourishing ecosystem for organised crime, human trafficking and other grave organised criminal activities, all of which thrive in the shadow of the respondent’s failure to implement a time-bound, technologically driven investigative protocol,” it adds.

The critical “golden hour” following a disappearance is routinely ignored, the plea contends, adding that complaints are met with procedural hesitation, leading to a delay in the registration of FIRs.

The petitioner sought directions from authorities to ensure strict implementation of its protocols in every missing person case.

It has also sought directions from the Delhi Government and Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golccha to constitute a high-level coordination committee for a periodic cross-verification of missing person records with data relating to unidentified patients in government hospitals and unidentified bodies in mortuaries.

On February 9, the National Human Rights Commission issued notices to the Delhi government, Chief Secretary Rajeev Verma, and the police chief seeking a detailed report within two weeks on missing person complaints registered in the national capital this year. Citing media reports, the commission said 807 such complaints were filed in the first two weeks of January and only 235 of those were resolved. It observed that, if true, the reports raise serious issues of violation of human rights. According to Delhi Police data, of the 807 missing people, 191 are minors. Citing media reports, the commission said 24,508 people were reported missing in Delhi in 2025, of which 60% were women.