4 schoolgirls runaway from homes, concoct abduction story; found in Goa

Dharwad, Oct 9: Four high school girls, who had run away from their homes in Arekurahatti village of Navalgund taluk, were traced to Goa on Saturday. While one girl studies in Class 9, the remaining three are Class 8 students.

According to police, Rani (name changed), had left her home as her grandmother scolded her for not studying properly. One of her friends advised Rani to desert home and head to Goa to find an employment as her parents were earlier residing there.

She also agreed to accompany Rani along with their two other friends. They went to the school on Friday morning on the pretext of attending some programme. Rani had also managed to lay her hands on Rs 900 kept at home by her father.

All the four girls travelled to Margao by paying Rs 660 as bus fare. On reaching Margao, they enquired the Kannada-speaking people about employment opportunities. On the advice of local people they reached Bhoothnath temple in the town. They got anxious as they failed to get any job and had around Rs 250 left with them.

On Friday night, one of the girls called her uncle using the mobile phone of a local resident, claiming that they had been abducted and feared wrath of their parents. The district police managed to trace the girls in Margao, within 24 hours of the call.

Meanwhile, the headmaster of the school, where the girls studied, had lodged a missing complaint with Navalgund police on Friday.

The girls were handed over to their parents. The parents have been counselled as the girls were very sensitive, Superintendent of Police Dharmendra Kumar Meena said.