Manipur Police on August 28 rubbished the ‘news’ of kidnapping of 17 school students that went viral on social media. The police clarified that it was a cooked-up story by three students to bunk classes.
Rumours went viral on social media earlier on August 28 that three girls of a school in Bishnupur district of Manipur made a daring escape from a kidnapping bid by masked miscreants. The rumours spread like a wildfire in strife-torn Manipur. However, police confirmed it as some cooked-up story.
Three girl students were reportedly informed that they were kidnapped with other children by two persons wearing masks from Kabowakching on the way to their school in the same village at around 8.55 am on August 28.
They further stated all other children were wearing black clothes and they also changed their school uniform at the relative of one of them, the three girls reportedly narrated.
While traveling in the vehicle, they became suspicious of the motive of the masked men and jumped out of the vehicle at the Kamong Maishnam area.
The police said that the news was verified by the district police and it was established that the three children fabricated the story as they skipped their classes. The three children were being handed over to their parents.
Superintendent of police of Bishnupur, K Meghachandra rubbished the narrative of the three girls while asserting that they were “not abducted”.
The police officer said that there was no such instance of abduction of the girls. The three girls presented a “fabricated story” as they had “skipped classes”.
The false report spread like wildfire, leading many to believe in the alleged kidnapping incident, he said.
The police officer also said that the district police addressed the incident and highlighted the discrepancies in the girls’ recounting of events.
The three students alleged they were kidnapped by two masked individuals on their way to school.
However, on further investigation, inconsistencies emerged in the girls’ testimonies.
“Following proper verification and due formalities, we established that their narrative was concocted to avoid punishment for skipping classes,” the SP clarified.
