Kidnapped infant’s rescue reveals wide inter-state network

Stealing Kids From Rail Passengers

Lucknow: Rae Bareli police busted an inter-state infant kidnapping and child sale racket operating across UP, Bihar and Uttarakhand after rescuing a nine-month-old baby boy. Police detained nine persons, including four women involved in the network.

A woman travelling alone with her two children from Delhi to MP was targeted by the gang onboard a train on May 13. Lucknow railway station onwards, the mother of two was approached by a man and woman who kept offering her assistance with the children. At Rae Bareli railway station, the accused took the woman to a dhaba outside the platform. The man fled with her nine-month-old infant child.

The woman approached Kotwali Nagar police station where case was registered under Section 140(1) of BNS and later Section 143(4) BNS was added. Rae Bareli SP, Ravi Kumar, launched an operation involving CCTV analysis, technical surveillance, railway station footage examination and human intelligence gathering. Police tracked movement of the accused towards Moradabad-Rampur belt and dispatched teams to multiple districts.

Within days, police rescued the infant and busted the child-lifting network. The accused were identified as Ramkumar Das and his wife Reshma Devi, residents of Araria district in Bihar, who targeted vulnerable women travelling alone with children. The accused were arrested near the railway colony water tank area in Rae Bareli on May 20.

“Police unearthed an interstate network involving brokers, facilitators, prospective buyers and persons allegedly linked to clinics and medical establishments,” said SP Kumar. Police said Sumit Kumar was a broker providing infants for sale to childless couples, while Kiranjeet alias ‘Sardar Aunty’ was key intermediary who approached the buyers.

The infant kidnapped in Rae Bareli was to be handed over to Sanjay Kumar Saini, a childless man from Moradabad region for Rs 50,000, of which, Rs 10,000 was to be transferred directly to Sardar Aunty and Rs 10,000 to the account of her relative. Brahmpal Singh, Archana, Babita and Harishchandra are suspected to have been involved in previous arrangements and circulation of children’s photographs among prospective buyers.

Police have so far arrested Ramkumar Das, Reshma Devi, Sardar Aunty, Sumit Kumar and Sanjay Kumar Saini.– intended receiver of the kidnapped infant. Role of Brahmpal Singh, linked to clinics, is under inquiry.

Police rescued the abducted infant and seized the car used in the crime. IG, Lucknow Range, Kiran S, described the operation as a major breakthrough.