Three days after a 17-year-old girl reportedly went missing from New Madhopuri, her family members on Saturday blocked the national highway near Basti Jodhewal Chowk for nearly an hour accusing the police of failing to make any significant headway in the investigation despite an FIR having been registered in the case.The protest on national highway near Basti Jodhewal Chowk in Ludhiana on Saturday. The girl’s family claims CCTV footage shows three men abducting her. (HT Photo)The protest, which began around noon, brought the traffic to a standstill on the busy stretch as e-rickshaw and auto-rickshaw drivers joined the family and parked their vehicles across the carriageway. Hundreds of commuters remained stranded in long queues under the scorching afternoon sun before police officials intervened and persuaded the protesters to disperse.The family alleged that although the girl went missing on June 3 and an FIR was registered the following day, the investigation had yielded little progress. They further claimed that instead of actively pursuing leads, police officials asked them to collect CCTV footage from cameras installed in the locality.Manpriya Madho, the girl’s father and an e-rickshaw driver, said his wife Priti, who works at a readymade garment store, returned home from work briefly and handed over ₹15,000 to their daughter and asked her to deposit the amount in bank, before leaving for work again.According to the family, the girl disappeared shortly thereafter. Madho said he returned home around 5 pm and, upon finding his daughter missing, launched a search with relatives and neighbours before approaching the police later in the evening.The family claimed that while examining CCTV footage from the area, they found visuals showing three men taking away their daughter.Addressing the protesters, the girl’s mother alleged that despite repeated appeals and visits to the police station, no breakthrough had been achieved in the case, forcing the family to resort to a blockade.Additional deputy commissioner of police (ADCP-I) Sameer Verma said, “The Daresi police have registered an FIR under Section 127(6) (wrongful confinement in secret) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and efforts are underway to trace the accused and rescue the girl.”Refuting allegations of inaction, Daresi station house officer (SHO) inspector Gurmeet Singh said police teams were actively investigating the case. “The girl’s mobile phone is switched off and officers are analysing CCTV footage from multiple locations to reconstruct the suspects’ movements.” On Friday, the Punjab State Commission for Women took cognisance of reports regarding several missing girls in Ludhiana and has sought a detailed status report from the police by June 8.