Kidnap, impersonation part of police probe

T’puram: With the police formally launching an inquiry into the case of missing child, filed by the child’s mother Anupama S Chandran, the case has gained a serious criminal angle involving kidnapping and impersonation.
The police, which have now registered a case, included the charges for kidnapping, considered a grave offence. As per section 361 of the IPC, whoever takes or entices any minor male under 16 years, or under 18 years of age if a female, or any person of unsound mind, out of the keeping of the lawful guardian of such minor or person of unsound mind, without the consent of such guardian, is said to kidnap such minor or person from lawful guardianship. The offence will invite an imprisonment of seven years. Also, the name and address of the child’s father were given wrongly in the child’s birth certificate. As per section 419 of the IPC, whoever cheats by personation shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to three years.
According to police, the first petition by the complainant was received in April but it had no mention of the missing child. After the second petition, which was about the missing child, the police summoned Anupama’s parents, who then produced the affidavit signed by Anupama, (which she later claimed was done forcefully). “When the police received the complaints, those were processed properly and disposed of. When the petitions later came from the higher authorities, the police then recorded the statements of the complainant and the parents. On the basis of legal advice, an FIR has been registered and the probe is going on,” said Balram Kumar Upadhyay, IG and city police commissioner (Thiruvananthapuram).
“When police receive a complaint, they are duty-bound to register a case and investigate it. In a strict legal sense, if there was any delay in the matter, the department will have to initiate action against the police officers as it was a lapse on their part,” said Vinson M Paul, former DGP.