Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Saturday, October 25 ordered the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the Commissioner of Police to locate Suraj Lama, who has been reported missing since his arrival in Kochi from Kuwait on October 5. A Division Bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice MB Snehalatha heard a habeas corpus petition brought by Lama's son regarding his father's disappearance. During the proceedings, the Bench verbally assured that all possible measures would be employed to find the missing individual. "Now we want to trace him out, we have to trace him out. Come what maybe, we have to trace him out...We want full details through the embassy now," LiveLaw reported the court as saying.

What is the Issue?

According to the petition, Suraj Lama had operated hotel businesses in Kuwait for many years. Following a period without contact, Suraj's son Santon and his mother contacted his father's acquaintances in Kuwait, who informed them that Suraj had been hospitalized for alcohol poisoning. They learned he was experiencing partial memory loss, speech difficulties, and was unable to remember his own identity. Subsequently, Suraj Lama was reportedly moved to a deportation facility in Kuwait. On October 7, 2025, a friend sent a photograph of an airline ticket, allegedly captured from a security guard's mobile device, showing a Kuwait-to-Kochi flight scheduled for October 5, 2025. Upon receiving this information, Santon and his mother traveled to Kochi and filed a complaint with the Nedumbassery Police Station near Cochin International Airport. The petitioner later received reports of his father being spotted in various locations around Kochi, but efforts to locate him proved unsuccessful. Upon receiving this information, Santon and his mother traveled to Kochi and filed a complaint with the Nedumbassery Police Station near Cochin International Airport. The petitioner later received reports of his father being spotted in various locations around Kochi, but efforts to locate him proved unsuccessful. After seeking media assistance and receiving support from the Kerala State Legal Services Authority (KeLSA) following media coverage, Santon submitted a representation to the Commissioner of Police and conducted private searches, all without success. This led him to approach the High Court for relief.

Representing the petitioner, Advocate Parvathi Menon alleged that the authorities are not acting with the alacrity that they should normally exhibit for finding a missing person.“We do not propose to make any incriminatory remark at this stage but rather of the view that a special team must be constituted headed by the Commissioner of Police so as to trace out Suraj,” she stated.

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