A distressing incident sent shockwaves through the central bus terminal in Gwalior late Sunday night after an infant, approximately one and a half months old, was abducted from right under her sleeping family's watch. The missing girl, identified as Pooja, was lifted by an unidentified individual who vanished into the night. The sudden disappearance of the six-week-old baby immediately spurred local law enforcement into action, triggering an extensive overnight search operation across the entire urban expanse of Gwalior. Investigators reviewing area surveillance recordings quickly spotted a crucial development: an unidentified man was captured on camera carrying the infant in his arms on foot, providing the primary investigative lead for tracking the perpetrator.
Displaced Family Was Sheltering at the Transit Hub
The victim's mother, Radha Ahirwar, originally hailing from Tikamgarh district, filed a formal complaint with the police detailing the sequence of events. According to her account, she had travelled to Gwalior alongside her husband, Harish Chandra, and their two young daughters only three days prior in search of daily wage work. Lacking permanent shelter or local accommodation in the city, the four-member family had been temporarily camping out on the platforms of the main bus stand. On Sunday, Harish Chandra had left to look for day labour opportunities but returned later in an intoxicated condition.
Radha stated that her husband had spent all of the household's remaining cash reserves on liquor, triggering a heated dispute between the couple. Sometime following the altercation, Harish Chandra complained of a severe headache and fell asleep on the bus stand pavement. With no money left to purchase provisions, the mother was left on her own to arrange food for her two young children.
Snatched During a Brief Absence
Radha then went around seeking assistance from strangers and managed to gather a small sum of money, with which she bought milk for her daughters. After feeding them, she put the one-and-a-half-month-old infant Pooja and her elder daughter to sleep. A woman and two other men were sitting nearby at the time. Assuming her children were settled safely on the platform, Radha stepped away for a short while to attend to immediate chores.
When she returned roughly an hour later, she was met with an alarming discovery. While her elder daughter remained fast asleep, the infant Pooja was nowhere to be found. A frantic search began on the spot, during which nearby witnesses informed Radha that an unknown man had picked up the baby and walked away. Without delay, she alerted police personnel stationed at the bus stand to report the kidnapping.
Surveillance Leads and Citywide Police Cordons
Following the distress call, senior police officials were alerted, and operational teams moved swiftly to secure the city. Strategic checkpoints were established across key transit arteries, and extensive vehicle inspections commenced to prevent the kidnapper from slipping outside Gwalior's municipal boundaries. Scrutiny of surveillance feeds from security cameras positioned around the transit facility yielded visual confirmation of an unknown male carrying the baby away on foot, establishing the initial timeline and direction of travel.
Search parties thoroughly combed high-traffic areas, including the local railway station, the Mela grounds, and commercial passenger buses parked around the terminal. Despite rapid mobilisation and extensive overnight sweeps, neither the baby nor the suspect could be located through the late hours of Sunday night. Based on Radha Ahirwar's formal complaint, investigators registered a kidnapping case against the unidentified individual and proceeded to interrogate night vendors, passengers, and witnesses who were present at the terminal during the abduction.
Infant Recovered Unharmed Near Local Hospital
The abduction of such a young infant placed high operational urgency on the Gwalior police force, with top officials ordering round-the-clock tracking. Additional patrol squads were deployed, and intensive surveillance was extended across surrounding neighbourhoods, intersections, and public transport hubs. The relentless police sweep and mounting pressure soon produced results: in the early morning hours of Monday, the infant was discovered safe and unharmed near Kamla Raja Hospital. Authorities believe the suspect, feeling hemmed in by citywide barricades and active patrols, chose to leave the baby at the medical complex before fleeing. A targeted manhunt remains underway to identify and apprehend the perpetrator.
