Parents' debt: Boy abducted, rescued in Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: A 12-year-old boy and his 17-year-old brother have been rescued by Childline officials from the clutches of a sweet stall owner in Kancheepuram. The stall owner had lent their parents 1 lakh and made the children work for him.
The matter came to light on Tuesday evening when stall owner Ilayaraja and his henchmen abducted the 12-year-old from a bus the brothers had boarded at Kancheepuram to return to their native Nilakottai in Dindigul district. The abductors told the teen to bring 1 lakh and take his brother and fled with the child before onlookers could intervene.
Childline officials said they received information about the commotion at Kancheepuram bus stop and rushed to the spot. They found the teen standing helpless. After he recounted the ordeal the children had been through, Childline officials went with him to Ilayaraja's stall, which was near the bus stop, and rescued the 12-year-old.
The brothers were later sent to a government rescue home at Chengalpet. The teen told Childline officials that he was working at Ilayaraja's sweet stall for the past two years after his parents borrowed 1 lakh from him. Ilayaraja was deducting money from the teenager's salary.
Five months ago, he made the parents send their 12-year-old too. The teen, however, was unhappy that his younger brother, a Class VII student, was being forced to give up studies. But, Ilayaraja refused to send him back. On Tuesday, the teen decided to take his brother home without Ilayaraja's knowledge.
But within minutes of the brothers boarding a bus, Ilayaraja and his men took the child away. An onlooker alerted Childline. "We received information about a boy being forcibly taken away from a bus. We verified and informed the police," said Kancheepuram district Childline coordinator S Avinash.
Child Welfare Committee officials in Kancheepuram said a probe is on and a letter has been sent to the labour department for investigation into instances of child labour.