Delhi High Court rejects PIL seeking dedicated cell for missing person cases

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (February 18, 2026) refused to entertain a petition seeking the creation of a dedicated cell in each police station in the city for cases of missing persons.

A bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia said the public interest litigation (PIL) by Anand Legal Aid Forum Trust sought “omnibus” relief and was devoid of any specific instances where the police had refused to register an FIR.

Relying on media reports, the petitioner’s counsel said the “alarming rise” in the number of missing person cases was a public issue.

“How policing is to be done should be left to the police. Where is the data on how many cases FIR was not registered? Don’t file petitions after reading a newspaper in the morning. Simply because you feel something should be dealt with in a particular manner, can you seek a mandamus?” said the bench.

“It is not for the court to direct police how its organization shall function. The task of constituting a specific cell in each police station in Delhi for missing persons is a job which should be entrusted to the police authorities as the same relates to its functioning,” said the bench.

The counsel for the authorities said the petitioner’s case of an “alarming rise” in missing person cases was not correct.

During the day, the court also issued notice to the Centre, Delhi government and Delhi Police on another PIL seeking a direction to the police to furnish the status of the total untraced persons.

The PIL by Jayeeta Deb Sarkar also sought direction to the authorities to formulate and implement a comprehensive protective mechanism and institutional safeguards to prevent the “alarming rise in disappearances”.

The petition asserted that the Right to be Traced and the Right to Investigation in cases of missing persons were intrinsic facets of the Right to Life and Liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution as they protected the dignity of the victims who are often trafficked into forced labour, sexual exploitation, or organ trade.

“The NCT of Delhi has become a ‘transit hub’ and ‘destination’ for the inexplicable disappearance of its residents. Official data reveals a distressing pattern while the State claims recovery rates are improving, the absolute number of untraced individuals remains staggeringly high,” the plea said.