Raj Thackeray criticises CM Fadnavis over rise in child abduction cases in Maharashtra

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday (December 13, 2025) raised concerns over the rising number of missing children and kidnappings in Maharashtra and highlighted that “interstate gangs are systematically targeting young children” across the state.

Mr Thackeray has written a letter addressed to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, where he criticised the Mahayuti-led government for neglecting critical issues of public safety and instead approving big budgets during the winter legislative session held in Maharashtra’s Nagpur district.

Criticising the government over no action against the gang, Mr Thackeray asked, “Why is there no clear strategy to curb such crimes?” He also suggested prioritising the discussions on child abductions, missing girls, and other public safety issues in the legislative assembly and conducting a DNA test if needed to identify the children seen begging in public areas.

In response, Mr Fadnavis said, “I have already given statistics and reasons for the disappearance of girls or boys. Also mentioned the numbers on children returned.” However, Mr Fadnaivis did not read the letter of Mr Thackeray, saying, “If they have any doubts, I will definitely answer them.”

“The important point is that even if a girl leaves home due to a fight and returns after three days, we file a missing person complaint. That is why we see a high number of such complaints. Our estimate is that if we consider a year, we bring back more than 90%,” he added.

Mr Thackeray referred to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data and mentioned that there has been a nearly 30% increase in child abductions between 2021 and 2024, and pointed out that most of the children are forced into labour and to beg on the streets. He inquired about the trauma inflicted on their young minds during that time, how the child-abducting gangs were even allowed to operate, and how they carry out their activities so boldly and without fear.

Yogesh Kadam, Minister of State (MoS) for Home, also reiterated that we have observed that more than 90% of the children come back, saying, “as a few children leave on their own, or have left for some other reason. However, this does not mean that we are not looking for the remaining 10% of the children. We are conducting a special campaign to find them.”