At least 26 girls hailing from different states, including Gujarat, Jharkhand, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, have gone missing from an illegally-run shelter home in Bhopal.
The incident came to light when National Commission for Protection Of Child Rights (NCPCR) chairman Priyank Kanungo made a surprise visit to the Aanchal Girls’ Hostel in the Parwalia area on the outskirts of Bhopal. After checking the shelter home’s register, Kanungo found that there were entries of 68 girls in it, 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.
The girls belonged to Gujarat, Jharkhand and Rajasthan, while some of them hailed from Sehore, Raisen, Chhindwara and Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh.
According to the FIR, many irregularities have been found in the children’s home, which was also being run illegally.
In a tweet, Kanungo said a missionary, who was managing the children’s home, had rescued some children from the streets and was running the shelter home without any licence. The NCPCR chairman also alleged that those rescued had been kept secretly in the children’s home and were made to practice Christianity.
“Most of the girls aged between 6 and 18 are Hindus. After much difficulty, the police have registered an FIR,” Kanungo said.
“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.
All the girls who went missing were living without the orders of the Child Welfare Committee. However, officials of the children’s home claimed that the children were rescued and later presented before the Child Welfare Committee.
According to the FIR, the children’s home has not been shut down and meat and fish items were found in the kitchen.
The FIR also stated that there were girls of different religions in the children’s home, but, officials said, they were made to worship only one religion (Christianity).
Notably, there were no CCTV cameras in the children’s home. Apart from two women security personnel, there are two male guards at night, which is a violation of the rules. It is mandatory to have only female guards in the girls’ shelter home.
A notice regarding the incident has been sent to the state Chief Secretary.
BJP, CONGRESS REACT
Taking note of the incident, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan has urged the government to look into the matter and take immediate action.
“Considering the seriousness and sensitivity of the matter, I urge the government to take note and take immediate action,” he wrote on X.
Former minister and Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma hit out at the BJP government, alleging that there was a mushrooming of illegal children’s homes under their rule.
“Along with religious conversion, there is a dirty game of human trafficking and a lot of immoral activities. The BJP does politics in the name of religion and such activities are taking place under their nose. It is shameful,” Verma said.