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Nagpur: Is the Second Capital City of Nagpur turning a kidnapping hub? Has kidnapping become a lucrative business for earning easy money? Has kidnapping turned a potent weapon to settle scores? Answers to the questions could be affirmative in real sense of the word. A scan of media reports would point out a spurt in the incidents of kidnapping of minor boys and girls every other day.
Kidnapping of children is done for an ostensible purpose of ransom or trafficking or for other nefarious designs in furtherance of another crime. Apart from the lucrative business of ransom demand, kids are kidnapped to be bought and sold in the market. There is a large number of children trafficked for various reasons such as labour, begging, and sexual exploitation. Because of the nature of this crime; it is hard to track; therefore making it impossible to have exact figures regarding this issue. Nagpur is a prime area for child trafficking to occur being the center of India. Kidnappings have different angles such as nexus, modus operandi and the repercussions.
The Second Capital City of Nagpur is witnessing increasing incidents of reported kidnappings. Recently, the horrifying kidnap and murder of Kush Kataria, son of a businessman and Yug Chandak, son of a doctor, had sent tremors across the city. Both the kids were abducted for ransom but later were murdered. The month of November this year alone registered several kidnappings. Nagpur Today was agog with headlines of kidnappings in recent days. Some of them screamed as follows:
• 14-year old boy kidnapped from Shanti Nagar.
• 13-year old boy kidnapped in Nandanvan area
• 4 girls, in age group of 10-15 years, kidnapped in Pachpaoli area, police launch massive hunt
• 13-yr old girl kidnapped from parking area of an apartment in Ajni, police launch a search
• 12-yr old boy kidnapped in Yashodhara Nagar
• 12-yr old boy kidnapped in Teka; cops hunt accused
• Minor girl kidnapped from Gokulpeth in presence of parents
• 13-year old girl kidnapped from Itwari in city
• Two minor girls kidnapped from Government Hostel, police launch manhunt to trace them
• 3-year old girl kidnapped in Jaripatka area
• 12-year-old boy kidnapped from Van Devi Nagar
• 9-year-old boy kidnapped in Sitabuldi area
• 8-year old girl kidnapped from Mecosabagh
• 3 minor girls kidnapped from Shraddhanand Anathalay in Nagpur, police launch manhunt
A countless number of children go missing every year. The category of missing children include a number of problems including abduction or kidnapping of children by family members and by non-family members, run-away children or those forced to run away by family and surrounding circumstances, children who are in a difficult or aggressive environment, trafficked children, and lost children.
Nagpur Today has no information, or say, police have not divulged the information, about the fate of the kidnapped children highlighted in the above headlines. There could be a good news and a bad one as well.
