Garhwal Post Bureau
Haridwar, 12 Jun: Haridwar police have cracked a major case of child theft in the district, recovering a four‑month‑old baby girl stolen from Vishnughat in the Kankhal police station area and handing her safely back to her family. Three persons, including a husband and wife, have been arrested in connection with the crime.
SSP Navneet Singh Bhullar disclosed the details at a press briefing held here today. Bhullar disclosed that Pushpendra, a resident of Sambhal district in Uttar Pradesh, had lodged a complaint at Rodi Belwala police outpost on 28 May reporting the theft of his child. He had told police that on 27 May he had come to Haridwar with his family for a dip in the Ganga and had slept under a tree near Hathi Pul at Vishnughat. The next morning the family discovered that their four‑month‑old baby was missing.
Police immediately registered a case and formed a team to trace the child. The CCTV footage and witness accounts revealed a suspicious couple seen at Vishnughat on the night of 27 May with a child, and later boarding a UP Roadways bus with two children. Further investigation showed they had alighted at Dhampur and boarded a train towards Howrah. The challenge for police was that the train had 65 stoppages, making the search extremely difficult. The investigation was redirected to track the couple’s movements before reaching Vishnughat, which led police to Brahmpuri in Shivalik Nagar.
Further inquiry revealed that the couple were living with their children in a hut belonging to a local baba named Satyapal, who practised faith healing. Acting swiftly, police raided the hut and arrested Satyapal, who then led them to the couple. The stolen baby was recovered from their possession. During interrogation, the couple admitted they had four children of their own and had been lured by the promise of Rs 3 lakhs from a relative who wanted a son. When the woman refused to give up her own child, she discussed the matter with Satyapal, who advised them to steal a baby from the crowded ghats of Haridwar.
On 27 May, the couple arrived in Haridwar with their youngest daughter and stayed at Satyapal’s hut. Early the next morning they stole the infant, mistaking her for a boy, from a family sleeping at Vishnughat. On realising the child was a girl, they attempted to return home but later came back to Haridwar on Satyapal’s advice to sell the baby. They were caught before they could carry out their plan.
Police credited the breakthrough to the efforts of Rodi Belwala outpost in‑charge Naveen Singh Chauhan, head constable Satish Nautiyal and constable Nirmal Ragadh, while constable Wasim from the CIU office played a key role in gathering technical information. The arrests and recovery have brought relief to the family and exposed the disturbing plot behind the theft.
The arrested accused have been identified as Satyapal, son of Vijay Singh, resident of village Saidabad, Kotwali Laksar, Haridwar; Lal Bahadur son of Kanhaiya Lal, resident of Nagaria, Jaswant Nagar police station, Etawah, Uttar Pradesh; and Preeti Rani, wife of Lal Bahadur, resident of Nagaria, Jaswant Nagar police station, Etawah, Uttar Pradesh.
