US boy abducted, rescued from J&K, 2 held

The Kapurthala police have arrested two Jalandhar residents Siminder Kaur and her husband Ajitpal Singh for allegedly abducting an 11-year-old US citizen and taking him to Jammu and Kashmir.

SP (D) Prabhjot Singh said the arrests were made on August 3 in Feesal village, Yaripora area of Kulgam, following an intensive search operation led by the police with assistance from local intelligence units and in close coordination with the US Embassy. The accused were found hiding in a remote village with the abducted child, who had been missing for nearly three months.

The case was originally registered on May 14 at Police Station, Dhilwan, after the child’s grandmother his legal guardian in India reported that her grandson was taken without her consent by Siminder Kaur, a relative from Jalandhar. Though the child was returned, he was abducted again on May 12, prompting the authorities to launch a full-scale investigation.

Both accused, Siminder Kaur, wife of Ajitpal Singh, and Ajitpal Singh of Guru Amardas Nagar, Jalandhar, were presented before a court along with the child. On the court's direction, custody of the minor was returned to the grandmother, and the US Embassy was immediately notified of the recovery and the child's safety.