As many as 499 children were reported kidnapped in Maharashtra`s Navi Mumbai township between January and November this year and the police managed to trace 458 of them, while 41 remain missing, officials said on Wednesday, reported news agency PTI.
Among the 458 recovered children, the reasons for their disappearance indicated more of emotional distress and personal circumstances rather than criminal intent, as 128 of the cases were linked to love affairs and 114 to children running away after being scolded by parents, they said, reported PTI.
Besides, 103 children had gone to relatives, 63 left for trips, and 48 went to a girlfriend`s house. One case each involved mental disability and an accidental death report (ADR), a police release said, reported PTI.
Among these overall figures, 25 cases pertained to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, it said.
Between January 1 and November 29 this year, 499 children, including 349 girls, were reported kidnapped in Navi Mumbai. The police traced 458 of them, including 315 girls, the release said, reported PTI.
The 41 children still missing comprise 34 girls and seven boys, it said.
The police registered 483 cases of these child kidnappings and solved 442 of them, achieving a detection rate of 91.78 per cent, as per the data, reported PTI.
The majority of these cases were registered in the Turbhe area (51), followed by Rabale (49), the release added.
Man killed after dispute in Navi Mumbai; two held
In another case, the police arrested two persons for allegedly killing a 37-year-old man following a dispute in Navi Mumbai, officials said on Wednesday, reported PTI.
The body of Ratneshkumar Rajkumar Jaiswal, a resident of Panvel, was found near Kalamboli Circle in the wee hours of Monday, senior police inspector Avinash Kaldate said, reported PTI.
The police received inputs that two persons had killed him and arrived at the scene on a scooter.
They identified the scooter and based on technical analysis and examination of CCTV footage of the area, they apprehended Mohammad Chand Shabbir Shaikh (25), who worked in a private firm, and Juef Jamil Ilias Shaikh (25), a meat seller, on Tuesday, the official said, reported PTI.
During interrogation, the accused told the police that they were involved in a quarrel with a group of transgender persons at the Kalamboli Steel Market service road shortly before the incident.
“At that time, the victim and his friend reached the spot to intervene and resolve the dispute. The accused got enraged by this and assaulted the victim, causing his death,” Kaldate stated, reported PTI.
The accused then fled the scene. Despite the lack of initial clues, the police worked swiftly and zeroed in on the culprits in less than 24 hours, the official said.
(With inputs from PTI)
