The police have arrested four self-styled godmen for allegedly abducting a 10-year-old boy and forcing him into begging with a threat that they would cut off his limbs if he refuses to oblige.
The matter came to light after a woman cop came to know about four men in saffron robes roaming with a child in Sahnewal area of Ludhiana.
When the child was questioned, he told police that he had left his home as his parents scolded him for not studying. Later, the four accused caught hold of him and forced him to beg.
An FIR was registered against the accused at Sahnewal police station under the sections 363-A (kidnapping a minor for purpose of begging), 365 (kidnapping) and 34 (acts done by several persons with common intention) of IPC.
They were identified as Bhola Nath, Balram, Garju Parsad, and Sunil Singh. The accused are homeless and used to sleep at a local railway station.
Sub-Inspector Simranjit Kaur, who pursued the case, said that they received a tip-off about four persons in saffron robes begging in the area with a child, who was visibly terrified.
The child was identified as Robin Preet of Mullanpur.
“We stopped the accused and questioned them. The accused started making excuses that the boy is their relative and staying with them from many years. When we asked the boy he revealed the truth. He said that he had left the house after his parents scolded him for not concentrating on studies and reached railway station. The accused caught hold of him and forced him to beg threatening that otherwise they will cut off his limbs,” she added.
She added that the child was safely handed over to the family.
