Daijiworld Media Network – Mumbai

Mumbai, Aug 24: In a shocking incident, the body of a three-year-old boy, reported missing from Surat, was found in the lavatory of the Kushinagar Express at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) early Saturday.

Police identified the victim as Akash alias Aarav Shah, who had gone missing on August 21. His cousin, 26-year-old Vikas Kumar Shah, has been named as the prime suspect. Gujarat Police and Mumbai’s Government Railway Police (GRP) have launched a joint search operation to track him down.

The gruesome discovery was made around 1 am, when conservancy workers cleaning the train found the child’s body stuffed inside a dustbin in the lavatory. His throat had been slit, forensic experts confirmed after post-mortem examination.

The child’s mother, Durgavati, had lodged a kidnapping complaint after he went missing from their Surat residence. Investigations revealed that Vikas, who had come down from Bihar with his family, was last seen with the child. CCTV footage from Surat railway station also captured them together.

Police suspect Vikas travelled with the boy by train and later abandoned the body. How and where the child was murdered remains unclear. “We are verifying the sequence of events and questioning possible witnesses, including passengers and train attendants,” a GRP officer said.

Akash’s father works in the Middle East, while his mother is employed as a househelp in Surat. The family is devastated by the tragedy, as police continue to probe the motive behind the murder.

Authorities have circulated the suspect’s details and intensified efforts to apprehend him.