Kidnapped trader's 6-yr-old grandson rescued in Uttar Pradesh's Gonda; captors arrested

The Uttar Pradesh government announced a Rs 2 lakh reward for the joint team of police and STF for successfully carrying out the rescue operation.

Lucknow: A joint team of Uttar Pradesh Police and Special Task Force rescued the six-year-old grandson of a trader, hours after he was kidnapped in Uttar Pradesh's Gonda on Friday (July 25). All kidnappers involved in the case have been arrested, police said.

Following the development, the Uttar Pradesh government led by Yogi Adityanath announced a Rs 2 lakh reward for the joint team of police and STF for carrying out the rescue operation successfully.

According to reports, the grandson of Gutkha trader Rajesh Kumar Gupta was abducted on Friday afternoon. Some people allegedly carrying identity cards of the health department came to Karnalganj area of the district on the pretext of distributing masks. The boy was standing at a distance when the accused persons in a car approached him to give him hand sanitiser and pulled him inside the vehicle.

The police said that captors called the child's family and demanded a ransom of Rs 4 crore in exchange for his release. 

Additional Superintendent of Police Mahendra Kumar told PTI that child's father Hari Gupta lodged a complaint on Friday. 

On Friday, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a tweet in Hindi, attacked the Yogi Adityanath government, stating it has no right to stay in power if it cannot protect the children of the state.