Kanpur couple attempts suicide outside police HQ over inaction in daughter's missing

An elderly couple attempted self-immolation outside the police headquarters on Friday, alleging inaction in tracing their 22-year-old daughter's missing complaint for the past 105 days.

The incident prompted an inquiry into the conduct of the investigating officer and the station house officer.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Bilhaur) Sumit Sudhakar Ramteke has been tasked with investigating the roles of the investigating officer and the SHO and submitting a fact-finding report to the Commissioner of Police within a stipulated timeline.

Rakesh Dubey, a resident of Bilhaur's Mannivada, told reporters that his daughter Akanksha was abducted on August 31 while returning home after a 'Jalabhishek' ritual at Khereshwar temple in Shivrajpur.

Despite them lodging a complaint with the Bilhaur police, he claimed no efforts were made to trace her.

Dubey claimed he visited the CP office thrice and even submitted written applications to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's office twice, but his pleas were ignored.

"Having lost all hope, we attempted suicide by pouring petrol on ourselves outside the CP office. However, police personnel intervened and saved us," he told reporters.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (West), Vijendra Dwivedi, said the couple's actions stemmed from frustration over the lack of progress in locating their daughter.

Following the incident, three station heads and the IO have been instructed to expedite efforts to trace the missing woman. Senior officials have assured the couple of swift action, he added.