Criminal holds 20 children hostage in UP's Farrukhabad; rescue operation under way

Tribune News Service
Lucknow, January 30

In an alarming incident in Farrukhabad, a man reportedly facing murder charges held 20 children hostage in his house who he had invited on the pretext of celebrating his birthday.

To rescue the children, Uttar Pradesh DGP OP Singh has summoned the Anti-Terrorist Squad and the NSG.

The hostage drama is unfolding in Mohammadabad area of the district where Subhash Batham, an accused in a murder case, recently out on bail, had invited local children to celebrate his birthday and then locked them in.

When the parents along with others tried to get the door opened, Batham started firing from inside in which one person was injured in the leg. Two police officers were also injured in the firing.

Batham even threw a low-intensity bomb from the window further terrorising the locals.

Heavy police force is deployed at the scene and they have encircled his house.

“Twenty children are being held hostage at Kasaria village,” Additional Director General of Police P V Rama Shastri said. 

He is reportedly shouting out that he had been wrongly framed in the murder case. When some parents tried to intervene, he fired at them and said, “You all will pay for putting me in jail.”

Locals say that he was an alcoholic and a drug addict.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath summoned additional chief secretary Awanish Awasthi and other senior police officials for an emergency meeting on the hostage crisis.

The CM also reprimanded Farrukhabad District Magistrate and SP for allowing things to go out of hand. He asked them to ensure safe release of the children.

DGP Singh told reporters that the police were acting with maximum caution to ensure the safety of the children inside.

“A special team of trained personnel is at the spot and we have kept NSG commandos on standby. Our priority is to ensure the safety of the children and rescue them at the earliest. It is a difficult situation and all senior police officials are at the spot. We want to rescue the children without any collateral damage. The local legislator, Nagendra Singh, is also trying to talk to the man,” said the DGP.

The police have also called Batham’s relatives and the local village leaders to mediate.

Tension prevails in the area as a large crowd, including nervous and sobbing parents of the children, gathered at the spot. — With PTI inputs