தமிழகத்தில் குழந்தை கடத்தல் கும்பல்- 3 குழந்தைகள் மீட்பு

 Inter-state child trafficking racketbusted in TN; three kids rescued  Selvaraj.A / Dec 18, 2025

Chennai: A routine probe into a child kidnapping case registered at the Chithodu police station in Erode district unearthed an inter-state child-lifting racket involving more than 60 individuals operating across Tamil Nadu and other states. While the kidnapped child in the Chithodu case was traced and rescued, the investigation exposed a wider network engaged in trafficking infants and young children.Police said three women — Shabana and her sister Reshma, both from Chennai, and Uma Maheshwari of Kodaikanal — were identified as the key coordinators of the racket. All three are absconding. Investigators found that they operated from cities including Ahmedabad, Mumbai, and Pune, coordinating with intermediaries across states.At first, the arrest of a couple in Bhavani led to the rescue of the child in the Chithodu case. Subsequent searches resulted in the rescue of two more children — an 18-month-old girl and an eight-month-old girl — from three other accused.The rescued children have been placed in a govt-run home following directions from the child welfare committee (CWC).It all began when 30-year-old woman complained on Oct 16 that her daughter Vandana, aged 18 months, had gone missing.

The complaint was forwarded by CWC officials. The child was sleeping beside her mother inside a makeshift tent beneath a flyover in Bhavani, with her eight-year-old brother nearby, when she was kidnapped during the night.Special teams led by additional superintendent of police Thangavel and deputy superintendent of police M Ratnakumar, besides more than 35 personnel, traced the suspects by analyzing CCTV footage and digital trails.The investigation led to the arrest of Ramesh, 35, and his second wife Nithya, 30. Police said Ramesh was previously arrested in June for lifting a child from a Narikurava couple sleeping on a pavement in Salem, in a case registered at the Fairlands police station.Ratnakumar said police initially analyzed details of 25 child-lifting cases reported since 2023 in the western zone. "While most cases were solved, the rescued children continue to be monitored in govt homes across Salem and western Tamil Nadu," he said.Another officer said, "When we tracked over 60 child-lifters, including Karuppasamy of Rajapalayam, who was involved in six cases, we found that the network extended beyond state borders and was run by well-connected agents."Investigators found that agents earned commissions ranging from 50,000 to 1 lakh per transaction. Prospective buyers were contacted in advance and meetings were arranged at public places such as temples, malls, and beaches, where children were handed over. While a boy child fetched 4–5 lakh, girls fetched 3–4 lakh, said an officer.During further operations, police rescued two girl children aged 15 days and eight months from the houses of Janaki, 40, and her sister Selvi, 36, in Salem. Another accused, Pravin, 35, an ambulance driver, was also arrested. Police said the children were taken from govt hospitals and pavements in Mumbai and Ahmedabad, brought by train to Chennai by Shabana and Reshma, and then moved to Salem.Police also said inquiries revealed that another infant boy was brought by the same network and handed over to a couple in Salem. Efforts are underway to trace the child. Searches are on to arrest the absconding coordinators and dismantle the remaining links in the racket.