Ahmedabad child abduction: Accused’s silence baffles cops

A mobile phone, SIM card, chocolate, chewing gum and her reluctance to speak in Hindi, have kept the police guessing about the activities of Saleja Mondal (55), the accused in the alleged child abduction case. The police are wondering whether she is just a beggar or part of an inter-state child trafficking gang operating in the city.

Police are trying hard to gather details of the suspected network and may soon go to other states for investigation. "Everything is not normal about Mondal. Her behaviour is suspicious," said GS Malik, inspector general of police, Ahmedabad range.

Mondal understands Hindi but refuses to talk in the language. This has made the police even more suspicious of her. DySP RK Patel told DNA that she had been visiting the city for the last few years.

"She has been here for a month-and-a-half but can't speak even a single word of Hindi. This is not possible," he said. He added that though the police are taking the help of a translator, they had to verify each and every detail provided by Mondal.

Preliminary police investigation has revealed that Mondal's son lives in West Bengal and is a beggar. "Her husband too was a beggar and she too survives by begging. It could have been very easy for her to get hold of children and traffic them to other states," the DySP said.

The police are, however, still groping in the dark and are yet to get any vital leads in the case. "We have tried to contact her son. But so far we have been unsuccessful," said Patel.