875 minor girls reported missing in Mumbai in eight months; police trace 846

Mumbai Police registered 875 abduction cases involving minor girls in the eight months from January to August 2026. According to the available figures, 846 of the girls were found or traced, a recovery rate of about 97 per cent.

Social workers, however, say that in many of these cases teenage girls leave home of their own will. They say the reasons include relationships, quarrels at home, discrimination or ill-treatment. They stress that instead of viewing every case only as a crime, the circumstances behind such incidents need to be understood.

In the same eight months of 2025, Mumbai Police registered 941 cases of abduction of minor girls, and 879 of the girls were traced. The recovery rate then was about 93 per cent. The figures show that fewer cases were registered in the first eight months of 2026 than a year earlier. In August 2026 alone, police registered 109 cases and traced 91 girls.

Police officers have clarified that when a minor goes missing, a case of abduction must be registered, even if there are indications that the child left home of their own will. An investigation is necessary to establish the circumstances of the disappearance, to find the child and to ensure the child's safety.

Figures presented in the Assembly in July by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis indicate why people leave home. According to figures for 2021 to 2026, about 46.32 per cent of missing women allegedly left home because of relationships. Family problems were involved in 20 per cent of cases, while mental stress was cited in 2 per cent. A different trend was seen among men. About 32 per cent of men allegedly left home because of domestic problems, while 9.12 per cent of the cases were linked to relationships. Activists say the figures show how important it is to look at family quarrels, emotional distress, discrimination and abuse when investigating missing-person cases.

On July 21, a seven-year-old girl went missing from a school in Hindu Colony, Dadar. Matunga police checked CCTV footage, tracked her movements and finally found her at Pydhonie. During questioning, the girl allegedly told police that she was missing her parents.

On the same day, a 13-year-old Class 9 student from Sewri went missing after school. She later returned after meeting friends. The incidents show why police investigate every missing-person case involving a minor, whether or not the child went alone.

In August, two separate cases involving 17-year-old girls came to light in Bhiwandi. In one, a teenage girl allegedly left home to meet a friend. In the other, a girl left her home at Brahmanand Nagar in Kamatghar at about 2 am while her family was asleep. Shantinagar and Narpoli police registered abduction cases and began a search for the girls.