Orissa high court directs Puri SP to form STF to trace missing toddler

CUTTACK: Pulling up the police over lack of progress in tracing a two-and-a-half-year-old girl allegedly kidnapped in December 2023, the Orissa High Court has directed the Puri superintendent of police (SP) to constitute a special task force (STF) and personally monitor the investigation.Issuing the direction on February 23, a division bench of Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice M S Raman expressed dissatisfaction over the prolonged pendency of the habeas corpus plea filed by the child’s parent.“It is a sordid state of affair that since 2023, the instant writ petition in the nature of habeas corpus is pending before this Court and despite several directions having passed from time to time, the minor girl, who is allegedly kidnapped, is not able to be rescued,” the bench observed.Considering the limited headway in the probe, the court said the time had come for the SP, Puri, to take personal initiative by constituting an STF within a week of communication of the order. The SP has also been directed to review the steps taken by the STF and issue necessary directions as warranted, besides filing a progress report before the next hearing on March 16, 2026.Stressing that the child’s welfare was paramount, the court added, “We are concerned with the welfare of the child and no complacency can be shown in this regard.”

The bench noted that earlier orders had required the investigating team to either rescue the girl or ascertain her whereabouts. However, no tangible outcome has been reported. On the previous date of hearing, police had informed the court that a girl had been rescued by Airfield Police Station in Bhubaneswar, but she was later identified as someone else and not the petitioner’s daughter.According to case records, the child was allegedly kidnapped while her mother was selling tender coconuts outside a hotel in Puri in December 2023.

Around 6.20 pm, a man and a woman arrived in a car. While the man engaged the mother in conversation over buying coconuts, the woman allegedly picked up the child from near the vehicle and fled.A status report filed in February 2024 said three vehicles were shortlisted based on CCTV footage, including one with a Jharkhand registration number. Police are continuing their investigation into another suspected vehicle, while the child’s photograph has been circulated in an effort to trace her.