Kerala police en route to Visakhapatnam to bring back Assamese girl, likely to return tomorrow

Thiruvananthapuram: The 13-year-old Assamese girl found in Visakhapatnam may not be brought to Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday. A police team from Thiruvananthapuram left for Visakhapatnam early this morning at 4 am by train to bring back Thasmid Thamasum, who went missing from her home in Kazhakkoottam on Tuesday. The police team is expected to reach Visakhapatnam by tonight. As a result, legal procedures, including taking the child into custody from Childline, are expected to be completed only tomorrow. The girl is expected to reach Thiruvananthapuram by tomorrow evening.

The missing girl identified as Thasmid Thamasum is the eldest daughter of a migrant worker couple living in Kazhakkoottam, near Thiruvananthapuram. The 13-year-old girl was reportedly last seen at around 9.30 am in the house on Tuesday. After an initial round of searches, her parents lodged a complaint with the local police, who subsequently launched a massive search operation by evening.

The Malayali community found the girl on Tambaram-Santragachi Express heading from Tambaram, Chennai, to Bengal. Though a group she was sitting with, claimed to be her guardians, they quickly withdrew their statement on further questioning. She was handed over to the Railway Protection Force (RPF) around 10 pm, who then handed her over to Childline. When found, the girl appeared exhausted, having not eaten for hours. Thasmid was found after 37 hours of uncertainty and anxiety. The 13-year-old, who left home with just Rs 50, had traveled over 1,650 kilometers without even a meal.

Thasmid left home at 9.30 am on Tuesday. At 12.15 pm, she boarded a train to Kanyakumari. During the journey, a passenger named Babitha noticed her. By 2.45 pm, her parents reported her missing to the police, sparking a widespread search. Suspecting that she might have boarded a train to Assam by midnight, a search was conducted in Palakkad. At 4 am on Wednesday, Babitha informed the police that she had seen the girl on a train. By 7.30 am the next morning, Kazhakkoottam police had reached Kanyakumari and begun reviewing CCTV footage from the railway station.

At 4.05 pm, CCTV footage showed the girl collecting water at Nagarcoil station. By 5.15 pm, more CCTV footage confirmed she had reached Kanyakumari. At 6.20 pm, it was confirmed that she had boarded a train to Chennai. Later, it was verified that she had disembarked at Chennai Egmore station. Finally, at 10.25 pm, the girl was found in Visakhapatnam.