Crime

Sixteen Nepali children, who were forcibly taken to the Uttar Pradesh of India, have been rescued. 

Bhumi Bhattarai, the regional coordinator of Nepalgunj-based Shanti Rehabilitation Home, said that the minors, who were all male children, were rescued from child homes in Gonda and Siddhartha Nagar, India, and brought back to Nepal on Wednesday.

They were rescued in collaboration with Shanti Rehabilitation Home Nepal and the Deharadun-based Help Cross Organisation. 

"The Indian security personnel had held the children while they were being taken to India via interior entry point of Rupandehi from Railway Station of Gorakhpur, India, 10 days ago," Bhattarai said. 

Ten of the rescued children are from Nuwakot, five from Rasuwa, and one from Kailali. Most of them are under12 years of age. 

"The rescued children were taken back to Nepal," regional coordinator Bhattarai said, adding that the necessary legal process was arranged and consent was taken from the Child Welfare Committee Settlement in Uttar Pradesh, India. 

The rescued children would be handed over to their parents in coordination with the Crime Investigation Bureau of Nepal. 

Though the rescue mission concluded successfully, those involved in taking the children to India have yet to be identified, the police said. - RSS