Kolkata: A 10-year-old girl was allegedly targeted in an attempted abduction, after a youth tried to take her away, while her mother was momentarily distracted at Bhyabla railway station on the Sealdah–Hasnabad section on Tuesday afternoon. The man, Biswanath Ghosh, was arrested after locals caught the accused, thrashed him, and handed him over to the police.
According to police, the girl is a resident of Kankra Mirzanagar under Matia Police Station in North 24 Parganas. “She had visited her maternal uncle’s house with her mother. While returning, her mother briefly stepped out of the railway station for some work, leaving the child seated on the platform. During that time, the accused approached the child, struck up a conversation and tried to lure her away by offering her food,” a cop said.
Unaware of his intentions, the girl initially accompanied him.
However, after walking some distance, the girl became suspicious and started screaming for help. “The accused grabbed her by the hand and attempted to drag her away. Hearing her cries, locals chased the man and caught him,” a tea-stall owner said.