Kidnapped siblings found dead

Kidnapped for a ransom of Rs 30 lakh from outside their school in east Delhi’s Mandawali, a brother-sister duo were found dead near railway tracks at Pragati Maidan on Saturday.

Mansij, 7, and his five-year-old sister Yashvi, lived with father Manoj Kumar and mother Yogita in a rented house at Mandawali’s School Block. On Tuesday, someone locked the main gate of their house which prevented Yogita from collecting the duo from Mother Convent School.

“On reaching the school, she learnt that some men who posed as relatives took her children away in a car. From that evening till Thursday, the parents received about ten calls for ransom that increased from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 30 lakh,” a police officer said.

Police found the decomposed bodies of the two children lying in a jungle near the railway tracks at Pragati Maidan on Saturday. “There were worms on their bodies. They could only be identified by their school uniforms,” said a relative of the victims.

Police claim that the kidnappers had slit their throats. The ransom calls were traced to telephone booths at Ganesh Nagar, Pandav Nagar and other areas located near the victims’ house. 

“Yet they were unable to find the kidnappers. They kept telling us that we are probing the matter. We were deeply shocked when we learnt that the bodies of the children were found,” said Yogita’s brother Amit.

He added that the family suspects their landlord’s son Vivek to be involved in the kidnapping and murders, as he was allegedly trying to deceive them.

“He was taking my son to Anand Vihar bus stand, where he was not even supposed to go. While driving my son on his motorcycle, Vivek pointed to an auto-rickshaw parked near our house and claimed the kidnappers had placed a letter in it. He told this to us, even before the kidnappers informed us,” said Sunder Singh Chandra, grandfather of the victims.

Senior police officers said they are questioning Vivek and other people in this connection. A case of kidnapping and murder has been registered at Mandawali police station.