A 10-month-old baby’s alleged kidnapping from a running train has triggered a sweeping multi-district search across Uttar Pradesh. Railway police are scanning CCTV footage from stations spread over more than 600 km between Aligarh and Mirzapur after the child’s mother was allegedly drugged during her journey on the Nandan Kanan Express, officials said on Monday.
The incident has led to an extensive operation involving the government railway police (GRP) and the railway protection force (RPF), with teams deployed across five districts. The case was first registered as a zero FIR at Mirzapur GRP and has since been transferred and formally lodged at the Etawah GRP police station for further investigation.
Jitendra Kumar, GRP inspector, said teams from Etawah, Agra, Aligarh, Kanpur Central and Fatehpur are working together on the case. “Given the distance covered, this is a complex operation, but all efforts are focused on the child’s safe recovery,” he said.
According to police officials, the missing child, identified as Ibrahim, was travelling with his mother, Munni Begum, the wife of Aligarh-based mason Mohammad Raju. She had boarded Train No 12816 (Down) Nandan Kanan Express on Thursday while travelling to her parental home in Koderma district of Jharkhand.
Munni Begum told investigators that she had missed her scheduled train on Wednesday evening and spent the night at Aligarh railway station. During this time, she allegedly noticed a man in his early 30s wearing a green sweater who appeared to be watching her repeatedly. The same man allegedly boarded the Nandan Kanan Express the next day and sat beside her in the general coach.
{{/usCountry}}Munni Begum told investigators that she had missed her scheduled train on Wednesday evening and spent the night at Aligarh railway station. During this time, she allegedly noticed a man in his early 30s wearing a green sweater who appeared to be watching her repeatedly. The same man allegedly boarded the Nandan Kanan Express the next day and sat beside her in the general coach.
{{/usCountry}}She alleged that before the train reached Kanpur, the man offered her a laddoo, claiming it had been prepared by his mother, and also offered to hold the baby. Shortly after consuming it, she allegedly lost consciousness. When she regained consciousness at Mirzapur railway station, her child was missing.
Investigators said CCTV footage from Fatehpur railway station shows a man getting off the train around 3:40 pm carrying an infant. The footage reportedly captures him moving across multiple platforms and railway tracks before exiting the station area. Police said footage from station entry and exit points is being closely examined to track his movement.
Meanwhile, Munni Begum remains inconsolable, repeatedly telling officers that she wants her son back “at any cost”.