No SIT Needed When Missing Woman Is Traced Alive Abroad: Punjab & Haryana High Court Rejects Murder Theory Built on Assumptions
Case Name: Atma Singh v. State of Punjab & Others
Date of Judgment: 05 June 2026
Citation: CRM-M-24454-2024
Bench: Justice Surya Partap Singh
Held: The Punjab & Haryana High Court dismissed a petition seeking constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and further investigation into the alleged disappearance and suspected murder of a woman, holding that the material collected by the investigating agency conclusively established that the woman was alive and residing in Canada. The Court held that once the alleged missing person had been traced and identified through official records, passport verification, immigration data, video calls, and statements of close relatives, there was no basis for directing further investigation or prosecution for her alleged murder.
Summary: The petition was filed by Atma Singh, who alleged that his niece, Devinder Kaur, had disappeared under suspicious circumstances and had likely been murdered by her father and other relatives. The petitioner sought directions for filing a fresh status report and constitution of an SIT, contending that despite the passage of more than thirteen years, the police had failed to trace Devinder Kaur or investigate her suspected murder.
The controversy had its roots in an earlier FIR registered in 2013 concerning the alleged murder of Harpal Kaur, mother of Devinder Kaur. According to the petitioner, the circumstances surrounding Harpal Kaur’s disappearance and death also pointed towards the disappearance and possible murder of Devinder Kaur. The petitioner alleged that the investigation had been one-sided and that the authorities had failed to properly probe her whereabouts.
A central plank of the petitioner’s case was the assertion that the police had accepted an implausible explanation regarding Devinder Kaur’s disappearance and had thereafter abandoned efforts to locate her. It was argued that the continued inability of the authorities to physically produce her demonstrated serious lapses in the investigation.
The State, however, produced a detailed affidavit of a senior IPS officer outlining extensive efforts undertaken to verify Devinder Kaur’s identity and location. The investigation revealed that Devinder Kaur had obtained an Indian passport, subsequently renewed the same in Vancouver, Canada, and continued to hold a valid passport extending until 2032. Official immigration records further established her travel history, including departures from and arrivals into India between 2013 and 2024.
The police also arranged multiple WhatsApp video calls with Devinder Kaur. During these calls, her identity was independently verified by close relatives, including her maternal aunt and cousin. Statements of these relatives were formally recorded, and both confirmed that the person appearing during the video calls was indeed Devinder Kaur and that she was residing in Canada.
Justice Surya Partap Singh noted that the verification process was not based on a single source of information. Rather, it was supported by multiple independent factors including passport records, immigration data, video-call verification, and statements of close family members who personally identified Devinder Kaur. The Court found no reason to disbelieve the affidavit of the senior IPS officer or the supporting material produced before it.
The Court observed that the petitioner’s theory of murder was founded largely on suspicion and assumptions. Once the material on record established that Devinder Kaur was alive and residing abroad, the very foundation of the plea seeking prosecution for her alleged murder collapsed. Consequently, there was no justification for constituting an SIT or directing any further investigation.
Decision: Dismissing the petition, the Punjab & Haryana High Court held that the investigating agency had undertaken every reasonable step to ascertain the whereabouts of Devinder Kaur and had successfully established that she was alive and residing in Canada. Since there was no material indicating foul play or murder, the Court declined the request for constitution of a Special Investigation Team and refused to issue any further directions for investigation.