KOTTAYAM: Nine girls from a private shelter home at Manganam in Kottayam district of Kerala went missing in the wee hours on Monday. In the ensuing search of the police, they were found in one of the inmates’ house at Elanji near Piravom by noon.
The incident came to light when the shelter authorities went to the rooms of the inmates to wake them up around 5:30 am.
The shelter home, run by NGO Mahila Samakhya, is accredited under the social justice department and the child welfare committee.
On the basis of a complaint filed by the shelter home authorities, the Kottayam West police station launched a search operation to locate the girls and found them in one of the inmates’ houses at
Elanji.
According to police, the missing girls, including POSCO case victims, were staying in connection with various cases. They were housed in the shelter upon the direction from the CWC.
"The girls were protesting for the past few days saying they wanted to leave the shelter home. But they cannot be allowed to leave as it requires special permission from the CWC, the court. However, they were found missing in the morning," the senior official said.
Meanwhile, local residents said they could hear the screaming of girls at night. The police have started bringing back the girls to Kottayam. However, the police are yet to make a decision on the further stay of the girls.
This is the third such incident reported from Kottayam in recent months.