In a joint operation by the West District Police and the Crime Branch, six minor boys who had gone missing from Uttam Nagar area were traced within 12 hours. The minors had eloped from their homes, reportedly to see other parts of the national Capital.
According to police, the incident was reported on Tuesday morning from West District's Uttam Nagar area. Four cases of kidnapping were registered at the Uttam Nagar Police Station. Five teams were formed and with the help of Crime Branch officials a search operation was launched. "Officials of Uttam Nagar and Vikas Puri Police Stations, and Special Staff was sensitised about the missing children. Their photographs were pasted at prominent locations in the adjoining area. Teams were dispatched to Railway Stations, Inter-State Bus Terminals and Metro Stations," said Ranvir Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (West).
The search operation continued till late in the evening and one of the minors was later spotted near a Gurdwara in Tilak Nagar. later, his friends were also located there and all of them were handed over to their parents. All the children used to play together and had left their residence to see malls, cinema halls, etc. in the Capital. The children told police officials that they ate food at the Gurdwara and spent the night in a park, sharing a blanket. They did not return home fearing their parents' reaction.
In another incident reported from the same district, 12 children who worked as bonded labourers were rescued. Five people, identified as Avdesh Yadav, Pramod, Mujib Alip, Shahnoor Khan and Abdul Majid, were arrested. Nine children hailed from Uttar Pradesh, while three were from Bihar. They worked at various factories in the area. The rescued children, meanwhile, were produced before the Chairperson of the Child Welfare Commission (CWC) and have been sent to the Aradhya Shelter Home in Rohini for rehabilitation.