HC seeks report from CWC, govt on ‘confinement’ of seven girls

A bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Anu Malhotra also sought a status report from the CWC and the Delhi government and asked them to indicate their stand on April 29, the next date of hearing.

The Delhi High Court on Thursday sought the response of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Kalkaji, and the Delhi government on a plea filed by a group of parents, who alleged that their daughters had been illegally confined by the child body after being taken from a placement agency where they were working.

HC sought the response of the Child Welfare Committee, Kalkaji, and the Delhi government on a plea filed by a group of parents, who alleged that their daughters had been illegally confined by the child body after being taken from a placement agency where they were working.

A bench of Justice Siddharth Mridul and Justice Anu Malhotra also sought a status report from the CWC and the Delhi government and asked them to indicate their stand on April 29, the next date of hearing.

The court was hearing a plea filed by seven parents who alleged they were not allowed to meet their children and had no clue about their whereabouts. According to the plea, filed through advocate Kanhaiya Priyadarshi, a raid was forcefully conducted at the placement agency on March 12.

The plea stated that the raid was conducted by an NGO with the help of three police officials from the Govindpuri police station. It said the officials ransacked the premises in the absence of the owner without giving any specific reason.

The petition said after vandalising the premises, the police officials took 13 persons along with them. While six of them were released at night, seven persons were taken and allegedly confined with the Child Welfare Committee.

In their plea, the parents alleged they had filed their affidavits, highlighting their relationship with the detainees and sought the custody of their children. They claimed nothing had been done to date, following which they had to approach the court.

“The Child Welfare Committee is sitting on the matter and is neither revealing anything nor handing the custody of their wards,” the plea said.

Despite repeated calls and messages, there was no response was received from the Child Welfare Committee chairperson.

The matter will be now heard on April 29.