29 May 2024: The Government Railway Police (GRP) in Manmad and Bhusawal have officially closed two criminal cases involving five madrasa teachers, initially accused of trafficking 59 children from Bihar to Maharashtra for alleged child labor. The teachers, who were arrested in May 2023 and detained for four weeks, have now been cleared of all charges.
The cases were closed in March 2024 after GRP officers determined that the initial FIRs were filed due to a “misunderstanding.” According to the case details, on May 30, 2023, 59 children aged 8 to 17 from Bihar’s Araria district were traveling by train to Pune and Sangli to attend Islamic theology classes at madrasas. Acting on information from a senior officer associated with the juvenile justice board in Delhi and the Railway Board, the Railway Protection Force (RPF), in collaboration with an NGO, intervened and “rescued” the children at Bhusawal and Manmad stations.
Authorities, suspecting the children were being trafficked for child labor, housed them in shelter homes in Nashik and Bhusawal for 12 days. This led to significant parental outrage, demanding the children’s return. The Nashik district administration eventually escorted the children back to Bihar.
RPF officials claimed the five madrasa representatives accompanying the children could not provide adequate documentation for their travel, leading to the filing of FIRs under sections 370 (trafficking of persons) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code. The arrested individuals were identified as Mohammed Anjur Alam Mohammed Syed Ali (34) from Sangli, Saddam Hussain Siddiqui (23), Noman Alam Siddiqui (28), Ezaj Ziyabbul Siddiqui (40), and Mohammed Shahnawaz Haroon (22) from Araria.
During the investigation, GRP officers verified the credentials of the accused and the children. “After due verification, we ascertained there was no human trafficking and filed a ‘C-Summary’ closure report before the court,” said Inspector Sharad Jogdand of Manmad GRP.
“Though people knew the cases were false, the FIRs and arrests caused social and psychological suffering,” said Mohammed Shahnawaz Haroon. “My family was so frightened and anxious after the incident that they asked me to cancel my decision to go to Saudi Arabia for a job,” he added.
Saddam Hussain Siddiqui recounted, “I had Aadhaar cards for all the children and offered to connect the police with their parents via video call, but they demanded an authority letter from the local sarpanch or parents, which we didn’t have. After remaining behind bars for 28 days, we got bail. My parents were so scared, they didn’t eat for days.”
Advocate Niyaz Ahmed Lodhi, representing the teachers, emphasized the need for compensation for the wrongful arrest and harassment. “Police should be trained better to be more cautious. Such false cases not only waste the time and resources of police and the judiciary, but also affect the department’s credibility,” Lodhi stated.
A senior GRP officer explained, “We registered FIRs based on complaints by RPF officials and NGOs. We could not refuse to file an FIR on suspected human trafficking of 59 children. Once we were sure no offence occurred, we dropped all charges.”
