By Muslim Mirror Staff

In a shocking revelation presented before the Rajya Sabha, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Ajay Mishra, disclosed that a staggering 9,765 women have gone missing from their homes in the troubled region of Jammu and Kashmir between 2019 and 2021.

According to the information provided by the government official, out of the total cases, 1,148 involve girls below the age of 18, and a concerning 8,617 cases involve women aged above 18 years.

The annual missing persons data in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) for the years 2019, 2020, and 2021 reveals a concerning trend. In 2019, there were 355 reported cases of missing girls and 2,738 reported cases of missing women. The following year, in 2020, there were 350 missing girls and 2,701 missing women. Finally, in 2021, the numbers increased further to 443 missing girls and 3,178 missing women.

Comparing this data with the figures from 2016 to 2018, where around 3,300 women were reported missing in J&K during those three years combined, it is evident that there has been a significant increase in the number of missing cases from 2019 to 2021. The increase indicates a threefold rise in missing persons cases over just three years.

Jammu and Kashmir, one of the Union Territories of India, now ranks second on the list of states and Union Territories with the highest number of missing women, with Delhi taking the top spot. The national capital reported a staggering 22,919 cases of missing girls below the age of 18 and an equally concerning 61,050 cases of missing women above 18 years between 2019 and 2021.

The statistics for 2021 reveal that Maharashtra has emerged as the state with the highest number of missing women above 18 years of age, reporting a distressing 56,498 cases. This revelation has prompted authorities to initiate investigations and bolster measures to protect women’s safety in the state.