More than 500 cases of missing girls pending in Pakistan’s Punjab province

Islamabad, Oct 9 (IANS) More than 500 cases of missing girls are currently pending in Pakistan’s Punjab province, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Rao Abdul Karim has said, local media reported.

The IGP appeared before the Lahore High Court as Chief Justice Aalia Neelum was hearing a petition lodged by a resident of Punjab’s Faisalabad, Sadia Hussain, who demanded the recovery of her daughter, leading Pakistani daily Dawn reported.

While hearing the petition, Neelum asked the IGP about the number of cases in Punjab which involved missing girls. Karim told the court that over 500 such cases were pending in Punjab. The judge asked whether the police are using any mechanism to deal with cases involving children and women. In response, Rao Abdul Karim said that special committees were established to deal with cases.

Aalia Neelum said that police seemed to be active only when courts take up such cases and noted that a girl who remained missing for two years was found only when the court took notice of the matter, Dawn reported. The judge expressed displeasure over negligence of the police in cases which involve women and ordered the IGP to submit a report mentioning efforts being made by the police to find the missing girls.

Meanwhile, a leading minority rights organisation said that Punjab’s Lahore reported 498 rape and 36 gang-rape cases in the first eight months of 2026.

Expressing grave concern over the disturbing figures, Voice of Pakistan Minority (VOPM) said that the data translates into an average of more than four reported sexual offences every day.

“No neighbourhood is spared. No community is immune. When sodomy cases are included, the total reaches 1,108 reported sexual-offence cases in eight months. This is not a crime wave confined to dark alleys or marginalised areas. It is happening in affluent sectors, crowded markets, and quiet residential streets. The violence is everywhere, and fear is everywhere with it,” it said.

Emphasising that the statistics reveal only part of the picture, VOPM cited rights organisations which have repeatedly warned that registered FIRs represent only a fraction of the offences actually committed.

“Stigma, shame, family pressure, distrust of police, and the threat of social ostracisation keep countless victims silent. Many never report. Many are told to stay quiet. Many are blamed. An increase in registered cases can signal two things at once: more crimes committed, and more courage to speak. But even with greater reporting, the system fails those who come forward,” it noted.

–IANS

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