Guj HC raps Vadodara police for prolonged probe in missing elderly woman case

The Gujarat High Court has come down heavily on the Vadodara police for their sloppy investigation in a case where a senior citizen from the city has been searching for his wife, who has been missing for the past seven years.

Justice Ilesh J Vora was hearing a writ petition filed by Abdulsha Diwan, a resident of the Navayard area of Vadodara, seeking a direction to be given to the police to trace his wife.

Justice Vora pulled up the police for their investigation methodology and said, “You have been investigating this case for the past seven years. What have you done? You have to clarify what you have done in the police investigation. You have to file an investigation report. You cannot just keep saying that the investigation is on. This kind of attitude of the police is not right or reasonable.”

The court directed the Vadodara deputy superintendent of police (DySP) to personally supervise the investigation in the case and file a report before the court within a month.

During the hearing of the case, Justice Vora raised serious questions about the police investigation and asked the investigating officer to be present in person before the court with the case papers.

Justice Vora strongly criticised the seven-year-long police investigation drama and the indifferent attitude of the police.

Petitioner’s argument before the court

Advocate Rohini V Acharya, appearing for the petitioner, said that the elderly woman has been missing since 2017, but even after seven years, Vadodara’s Gorwa police have not been able to trace her.

In a revision petition filed by the petitioner in the Vadodara Sessions Court against the failure of the police, the court had also ordered an investigation under Section 156(3) of the CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure) in the case.

However, despite this order, the police and the higher authorities have completely failed to produce any results, according to the petitioner’s side.

When the petitioner tried to know the details of the police investigation under RTI (Right to Information), the police only had one answer: ‘The investigation is underway,’ the advocate added in their argument.

The petitioner’s side had also demanded that the entire investigation of the case be transferred from the Vadodara police to the CID crime.

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