The Lahore High Court (LHC) has expressed concern over more than 500 pending cases involving missing girls in Punjab and directed the provincial police chief to submit a detailed report on the cases.
A division bench headed by LHC Chief Justice Aalia Neelum was hearing a case involving a 16-year-old girl who had been missing for an extended period. The girl was recovered by police and produced before the court following judicial intervention, after which the case was disposed of.
LHC questions large number of pending cases
During the hearing, Chief Justice Neelum asked Inspector General of Police Rao Abdul Kareem whether the girl presented before the court was the same person whose photograph was available on the court record. The IGP confirmed her identity.
The chief justice questioned why a large number of cases involving women and children remained pending despite the formation of committees to address such matters.
“If committees had been formed, why is the situation still like this?” the court asked.
The bench noted that a girl who had reportedly been missing for two years was recovered soon after the high court took notice of her case. It questioned how many other girls may have remained missing for similarly long periods.
The court also expressed concern over the attitude of police towards cases involving women, observing that a particular mindset existed within the department regarding girls involved in such cases.
“This mindset needs to change,” the chief justice observed.
She said more than 500 pending missing-girl cases represented a serious concern and urged officials to consider the distress faced by parents whose daughters had disappeared.
Police to review cases involving women, children
Speaking to the media, IGP Rao Abdul Kareem said police would review cases involving women and children, including the quality of investigations, their outcomes and subsequent follow-up.
He said around 3,200 such cases had been recorded up to January 2025, while approximately 500 cases dating back to January 1, 2021, remained pending.
The police would determine whether the missing women had been recovered and whether the relevant cases had been properly concluded, the IGP said.
He stressed that recovering missing women was a priority and highlighted the need for continuous capacity-building and training of investigating officers.
LHC allows FIA extortion inquiry to proceed
In a separate case, the LHC dismissed a petition seeking to stop an inquiry against Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials over allegations that a British citizen of Pakistani origin and his brother were forced to hand over cash, vehicles and documents during their detention.
Justice Jawad Zafar dismissed a petition filed by Akmal Hussain, who had sought to restrain an inquiry ordered by a Faisalabad Justice of Peace against FIA Director Saqib Sultan, Inspector Ajmal Hussain and other officials.
The court, after examining the record and hearing arguments, ruled that the inquiry should proceed and held that the Justice of Peace’s order was justified.
During the proceedings, counsel for British citizen Salman Babar, Advocate Mian Dawood, told the court that his client was of Pakistani origin, operated a vehicle business in the United Kingdom and had returned to Pakistan after 16 years.
The court observed that allegations of misuse of authority and such incidents could undermine public confidence in state institutions, allowing the inquiry to continue.
