12 of 26 Girls Missing from Bhopal 'Illegal' Hostel Located, Official Alleges 'Conversion'

The Madhya Pradesh police have located at least 12 girls out of the 26 girls who went missing from an allegedly illegally-run shelter home. These 12 girls were found at their homes, said police.

Two district Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs) were also suspended in connection with the missing case of 26 girls, while notice was issued to another two functionaries.

The matter unfolded when National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) chairman Priyank Kanungo made a surprise visit to the Aanchal Girls hostel located in the Parwalia area on the outskirts of Bhopal.

After a surprise inspection, Kanungo claimed that he found that there were entries of 68 girls, but 26 of them were missing.

“When Anil Mathew, the director of the shelter home, was questioned about the missing girls, he did not give satisfactory answers. An FIR has been filed by the police in the case,” quoted news agency, IANS as saying Kanungo.

The FIR has been registered at Parwaliya Sadak Police Station in Bhopal under sections of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. It states that the children’s home was not being run under the Juvenile Justice Act and was unregistered.

He added that a missionary, who was managing the children’s home, had rescued some children from the streets and was running the shelter home without any license. The NCPCR chairman alleged that those rescued had been kept secretly in the children’s house and were forced to practice Christianity.

Kanungo has written to the Madhya Pradesh Chief Secretary, Veera Rana, and has sought a report within seven days.

The letter calls for immediate attention and action from the government in regards to the purportedly unregistered children’s home and the claimed disappearance of 26 girls. Additionally, he claimed that an NGO had discreetly maintained the kids in an unlicensed children’s home while posing as a government agency and aiding the children.

Nivedita Sharma, member, Child Commission MP said to NDTV that were many SC and ST children who practice Hinduism and Islam. She continued that many children are missing for whom it is being said that they have gone to their parents, adding that there is no photograph or document of where the parents have gone with them.

“Most of the girls aged between 6 and 18 are Hindus. After much difficulty, the state police registered an FIR. Unfortunately, the officials of the Women and Child Development Department of Madhya Pradesh want to run the child helpline on contract from such NGOs,” he added.

A local person was quoted by the English daily, who said that the shelter home was running for about 4-5 years and none was allowed to enter inside. The girls were sometimes allowed to visit market. The person also informed that 2-3 vehicles used to visit at midnight and then return again at the same time in the night, adding that a madam used to take responsibility of the girls to bring them back from school or to market.

BJP, CONGRESS REACTS

Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan reacted to it saying he would urge the Madhya Pradesh government led by Mohan Yadav to take tough action against those found responsible.

Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma slammed the state government over the disappearance of girls.

“In addition to religious conversion, there are several unethical activities and the nasty game of human trafficking. Such operations are happening right beneath the nose of the BJP, which engages in politics in the garb of religion. It is deplorable,” said Verma.