Five persons go missing every day on an average in Jammu and Kashmir, according to the data compiled by the Crime Branch.
From January to May 2018, a total of 889 persons went missing in J&K. Of these, 780 missing persons fall in the age group of 18-60 years and 109 in the age group of 0-18 years, the data states.
The police have found 417 of these missing persons.
As many as 509 females—447 in the 18-60 years age group and 62 below 18 years of age—have gone missing. A total of 380 males—333 adults in the 18-60 age group and 47 minors have gone missing during the past five months.
As per the media reports, two girls went missing from two locations in Kashmir on May 14.The police later identified them as 18-year-old Reenaz Jan from Kheribal Mattan, while the other was identified as 19-year-old Rubina Akhter from Rajouri who is presently residing at Wangund, Telbal area of Srinagar.
On June 20, police released another missing report of a girl and asked people to help them find her. On June 21, the police sought public help in finding a missing girl from Pandrethan area of Srinagar.
A girl went missing from her home in Buchpora locality of Srinagar on June 27.
As per the data compiled by the police’s Crime Branch, the highest number of missing cases has been reported from district Jammu, Kathua and Srinagar.
In January, when 110 persons (18-60 year age group) have gone missing—71 females and 39 men—31 went missing from Jammu alone. In Kathua, 12 persons were reported as missing, six from Kupwara, seven each from Doda and Udhampur and five each from Baramulla, Anantnag, Samba and Srinagar.
In the same month, 13 minors – nine females and four males– went missing. The data says that four persons from Udhampur, three from Jammu, two from Kathua, two from Shopian and one each from Pulwama and Reasi have gone missing.
In February, the number of missing adults went up. A total of 118 persons—72 females and 46 males—went missing. In Jammu 21 persons went missing, 15 in Kathua, 11 in Srinagar and six in Kupwara. As many as 22 minors—11 males and 11 females—went missing in the same month.
In March, 106 adult females and 60 males went missing: 37 persons from Jammu, 13 from Srinagar, 12 Poonch, 10 each from Budgam, Kathua and Udhampur and eight each from Kulgam and Pulwama. The same month, 13 female and 13 male minors also went missing.
In April, as many as 185 adults—92 females and 93 males—went missing, with Jammu again accounting for the highest number of missing cases: 23 from Kathua, 21 from Jammu, 15 from Udhampur and 10 from Rajouri. As many as 13 persons were found missing in Baramulla, 13 in Srinagar and nine in Anantnag. In the same month, 14 minor girls and 7 boys went missing.
In May, a record 201 missing cases were reported– 106 females and 95 males in the age group of 18-60 years. In Jammu alone, 45 persons had gone missing, 21 in Srinagar, 15 in Anantnag, 13 in Kathua and 12 each in Baramulla and Udhampur.