Man Arrested for Abducting Eight-Year-Old Girl Near Chennai Central

A 42-year-old man was arrested after allegedly abducting an eight-year-old girl who was sleeping beside her parents on a platform near the Chennai Central suburban railway station early Thursday morning. The child was safely rescued within 30 minutes of the incident, which occurred around 3 a.m. on July 2, 2026, thanks to the quick intervention of an alert autorickshaw driver and local police.

The victim's father, 56-year-old Shanijal Das, is a native of Jharkhand who has been working as an agricultural labourer in Tiruchi. He was travelling back to his native place with his wife and two children. The family had arrived at Chennai Central and was sleeping on the platform near the suburban railway station while waiting for their train to depart.

At around 3 a.m. on Thursday, a man approached the sleeping family. He allegedly picked up the eight-year-old girl, placed her on his shoulder, and walked away towards Walltax Road.

An autorickshaw driver in the area noticed the man carrying the child and grew suspicious. He stopped the man and questioned him. When the suspect responded to the queries in Tamil, while the young girl spoke in Hindi, the driver's suspicions were confirmed. He immediately alerted the Elephant Gate police.

Police personnel rushed to the scene, successfully rescued the child, and detained the suspect. The police then handed the suspect over to the Periamet police station, which has jurisdiction over the area.

Following a formal complaint lodged by the girl's father, Shanijal Das, the Periamet police registered a case and launched an investigation. The police formally arrested the accused, identifying him as Sasikumar, a 42-year-old resident of Ponneri in Tiruvallur district. Inquiries revealed that Sasikumar works as a painter. The young girl was safely reunited with her parents shortly after her rescue.