A court in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, has sentenced five individuals, including two women, to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in connection with an inter-state child trafficking case. The case involved a four-year-old boy who went missing from Uttar Pradesh and was later located in Andhra Pradesh after an extensive police search that spanned Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra.
Details of the Sentencing
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on each convict. The case dates back to May 2025, when the Hathras police dismantled a gang involved in trafficking children to childless couples. The accused obtained details of such couples through fertility centers and offered them children for sums ranging from Rs 2 to 3 lakh.
Modus Operandi of the Gang
Hathras Superintendent of Police, Chiranjeev Nath Sinha, stated that the gang primarily targeted economically vulnerable families. In some instances, children were sold with parental consent, while in others, they were abducted and later trafficked. The matter came to light after a complaint was filed by Rajesh Goswami, a resident of Hathras, whose four-year-old grandson went missing on May 9, 2025.
Investigation and Rescue
During the investigation, police scanned over 500 CCTV cameras and tracked the accused across several states, eventually reaching Andhra Pradesh. The boy, who was to be sold for Rs 1.8 lakh, was rescued in Vijayawada. Five accused were arrested and sent to jail. Additionally, four other kidnapped children were recovered, leading to the exposure of a larger trafficking network. An FIR was registered against eight individuals under Section 143(1)-(5) of the BNS, related to child trafficking. Police identified the kingpin as Mallika Arjun, a resident of Visakhapatnam.
Court Proceedings
Additional District Government Counsel Govind Vashishta said, “After examining all evidence and witnesses on Thursday, the fast track court of Judge Mahendra Kumar Rawat acquitted three Delhi-based accused due to lack of evidence, and the remaining five were convicted and sentenced to 10 years in jail.”
