28-year-old man convicted for kidnapping 4-year-old

MUMBAI: A sessions court on Monday convicted a 28-year-old man for kidnapping a four-year-old from the corridor of her Mazgaon home last year. The child was rescued after her father, who had walked out of the door to fetch her, saw the accused, Chand Ali, walking away with her.
The man was sentenced to only the time he had spend behind barsone year and nine monthsafter cops could not prove that he was part of a major racket that kidnapped children for begging.While the maximum sentence under section 363 (kidnapping) is seven years’ imprisonment, the maximum sentence under section 363 A (kidnapping or maiming a minor for purposes of begging) is 10 years.
The court observed that the charge under 363 A was added subsequently by cops only on the basis of a supplementary statement of the father, in which he claimed that a gang worked in the area and kidnapped children for begging. However, pointing out that this was insufficient to prove the charge, the court said the cops did not conduct any investigation to substantiate it.
The court said that considering his age, lack of criminal antecedents and the fact that he had come from a village in West Bengal to earn a livelihood, taking a lenient view was just and reasonable.
The father was one of three witnesses to depose. Recalling the April 21 incident, he said that when he saw the accused walking way with his child, he called out to her. The accused appeared frightened and began to run down the stairs. The father ran after him and caught him on the ground floor. The neighbours had gathered at the spot.
When the father questioned the accused, he did not seem to understand them and began to speak in Bengali. He was taken to the police station, where an interpreter was called. An FIR was then registered.
The court said there was nothing to disbelieve the father. It also said there was an absence of explanation for the presence of the accused at the spot and his lifting the child. It pointed out that the accused was caught red-handed.