Khurda: Police in Odisha have uncovered a bizarre case of staged abduction, involving a four-month-old infant boy reported missing from Nirakarpur railway station in Khurda district. What initially appeared to be a shocking theft from a platform has now been revealed as an inside job allegedly masterminded by the child’s own father.
According to Government Railway Police (GRP), the infant was safely recovered late Tuesday night from Kalamatia village under Ranpur police station limits in Nayagarh district. The child’s father, Prashant Pradhan, has been detained as the primary conspirator in the alleged plot.
Initial Complaint and Alleged Incident
The incident allegedly took place on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday when Prashant and his wife, Chinu Parida, were resting on Platform No. 3 of the station after alighting from a DMU train while en route to Chennai, where they are employed at a spinning mill. The parents claimed
that while they were asleep, an unidentified person snatched the infant from the mother’s lap and fled. They immediately raised an alarm but could not catch the suspect.
Distraught, the couple first approached the Railway Protection Force (RPF) but allegedly received little help. They later filed a formal complaint at the Nirakarpur GRP outpost with assistance from local social workers. Police initiated a swift investigation, reviewing CCTV footage and questioning witnesses, amid growing local concern over child safety at public places.
The Twist
Further probing exposed inconsistencies in the parents’ account. It was then revealed that Prashant himself had taken the child from the station platform and handed him over to his first wife at their ancestral home at Kalamatia village. The child was recovered unharmed from the village during a late-night operation.
Police sources said that Pradhan already had a wife and family at his paternal home in the village. He entered into a second marriage with his wife’s younger sister and the four-month-old infant was born from this union. The elaborate theft drama was reportedly staged to avoid social stigma related to his personal and family circumstances.
Pradhan has been detained, and a detailed probe is ongoing to establish the full motive and involvement of others in the staged kidnapping.