Over 1 lakh missing women cases logged in Pakistan's Punjab since 2021: Rights body
Synopsis
Over one lakh women went missing in Pakistan's Punjab in just four years — and the numbers may be more disturbing than they appear. With 80,000 cases closed on the basis of 'voluntary departure' statements that rights groups say are shaped by coercion, the data submitted to the Lahore High Court exposes a legal grey zone where consent and compulsion are dangerously blurred.
Key Takeaways
105,571 missing women cases were registered in Pakistan's Punjab between 2021 and 2025 , per VOPM citing Lahore High Court data.
More than 70,773 cases were classified as abduction ; 80,767 cases were subsequently cancelled.
In nearly 77% of cases, women reportedly told courts they left voluntarily — often citing marriage — but VOPM questions whether these statements reflect genuine free will.
3,258 women remain untraced ; only 612 have been recovered and presented before courts.
3,864 cases are still under investigation; 1,432 involve identified suspects yet to be prosecuted.
At least 105,571 cases involving missing women were registered in Pakistan's Punjab province between 2021 and 2025, according to a leading minority rights organisation, the Voice of Pakistan Minorities (VOPM), which cited data submitted to the Lahore High Court. The disclosure, made on Tuesday, 28 April 2025, has drawn fresh attention to the scale of a crisis that rights advocates say risks being normalised.
Scale of the Crisis
Of the 105,571 registered cases, more than 70,773 were related to abduction, according to VOPM. Despite the alarming numbers, 80,767 cases were subsequently cancelled — a figure the rights body describes as deeply troubling. For many families, the VOPM noted, case cancellation does not bring closure but instead leaves them with uncertainty, silence, and unanswered questions.
In nearly 77 per cent of cases — approximately 80,000 women — the individuals reportedly appeared before courts stating they had left home voluntarily, often citing marriage as the reason.
Point of View
But of how legal systems can launder coercion as consent. When 77 per cent of cases are closed because a woman stated in court she left voluntarily, the question is not whether the statement was made — it is whether the conditions under which it was made were free. Pakistan's Punjab appears to have a missing women crisis hiding inside a paperwork exercise. The 3,258 still untraced are not a residual footnote; they are the visible tip of a far larger accountability failure.
NationPress
1 May 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
How many missing women cases were registered in Pakistan's Punjab between 2021 and 2025?
At least 105,571 missing women cases were registered in Pakistan's Punjab province between 2021 and 2025, according to the Voice of Pakistan Minorities (VOPM), citing data submitted to the Lahore High Court.
Why were over 80,000 cases cancelled?
According to VOPM, 80,767 cases were cancelled primarily because the women appeared before courts and stated they had left home voluntarily, often for marriage. However, the rights body cautions that such statements may be shaped by social pressure, fear, and limited choices rather than genuine free will.
How many women remain untraced in Punjab?
As of the data cited by VOPM, 3,258 women remain untraced in Punjab, with their families continuing to live with uncertainty. Only 612 women have been recovered and presented before courts.
What is the VOPM and why did it raise this issue?
VOPM, or Voice of Pakistan Minorities, is a minority rights organisation that flagged the crisis citing data submitted to the Lahore High Court. It raised concerns about the normalisation of large-scale missing women figures and the inadequacy of legal frameworks to distinguish genuine consent from coercion.
What happens next with these cases?
The data submitted to the Lahore High Court is expected to intensify calls for legislative and judicial reform in how missing women cases are classified, investigated, and closed in Pakistan's Punjab. Over 3,864 cases remain under active investigation.
