Kerala child abduction case: Couple, daughter held
Kollam (Kerala) (PTI): A businessman, his wife, and their YouTuber daughter were arrested by the Kerala Police here on Saturday for allegedly kidnapping a six-year-old girl earlier this week, demanding a ransom of Rs 10 lakh.
The child was later abandoned on a public ground in Kollam after the incident gained widespread attention.
Police said the accused Padmakumar, an engineering graduate, his homemaker wife Anitha Kumari, and their daughter Anupama Padman, who boasts a substantial following on YouTube, were taken into custody based on a combination of scientific, digital, and circumstantial evidence.
ADGP M R Ajithkumar said that information provided by civilians, who recognised the voice of one of the accused during ransom negotiations, played a crucial role in their apprehension.
The kidnapping, which unfolded earlier this week, captured public attention when the perpetrators abandoned the minor girl on a public ground in this southern district.
The police, aided by a portrait of Padmakumar drawn with input from the kidnapped girl, successfully tracked down the accused.
The motive behind the abduction was allegedly the family's pressing financial issues.
"The abduction was a meticulously planned one. The accused had been planning the crime for the last one year and was looking for a suitable child to kidnap," Ajithkumar told reporters outside Pooyappally Police station where the case was registered.
Padmakumar was engaged in several businesses, including the operation of a local cable TV network, but is said to be suffering from an acute financial crisis post Covid.
"As per his statement, he had debt to the tune of over Rs five crore. He had an immediate need of Rs 10 lakh which prompted the family to carry out the crime," the official said.
Police suspected that Anitha Kumari was the brain behind the abduction.
The ADGP also said the accused had tried to abduct the child two times before but didn't succeed as she was accompanied by her mother and grandmother on the occasions.
Though 20-year-old Anupama had good earnings through social media, it suddenly stopped some time back due to technical reasons, which also prompted the family to think about some other easy way to earn money, the officer added.
He lauded the special police team under DIG Nishanthini who probed the case and nabbed culprits in a short span of time.
The six-year-old girl, who was kidnapped while going home from tuition with her elder brother, was found abandoned at a public ground here the next day.
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in Palakkad confirmed that the investigation had achieved significant progress.
"The main accused are in police custody. Police will divulge further details," Vijayan told a press conference here.
He lavished praise on the police force for apprehending the accused.
A remarkable investigation was carried out by the police in the case which helped take the accused into custody within a short span of time, he added.
A sincere and dedicated probe carried out by the police helped to nab the real accused in a short time, the CM said.
Vijayan also slammed the opposition Congress for criticising the police with regard to the investigation of the incident.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
