Missing 6-Year-Old Girl from Kerala, Held for Rs 10 Lakh Ransom, Finally Rescued

A six-year-old girl who was kidnapped in Kerala, India, for a ransom of Rs 10 lakh has been found safe and abandoned in a public ground in Kollam. The child was discovered more than 21 hours after her abduction, and was immediately taken for a medical examination. Police officials were seen carrying the girl to their vehicles in order to bring her for the examination. The news of the child being found came as police were desperately searching for her. Earlier in the day, state ministers expressed confidence in the police investigation, while the youth wing of Congress held a silent protest outside the police station to express their dissatisfaction with the delay in rescuing the girl. The police had released a sketch of the suspected kidnapper and were exploring all angles to locate the missing child. According to the boy’s statement to the police, the kidnappers, including a woman, arrived in a white car and abducted the girl while she was on her way to tuition classes with her eight-year-old brother. The boy sustained injuries while trying to save his sister. The incident occurred on Monday between 4 pm and 4.30 pm. The kidnappers made two ransom calls, initially demanding Rs 5 lakh and later increasing the amount to Rs 10 lakh. They warned the parents not to inform the police. Police intensified their search for the girl, checking vehicles on all major and minor roads in the southern districts of Kollam, Pathanamthitta, and Thiruvananthapuram. The parents of the children are nurses working in separate private hospitals.