Kerala: No bail for YouTuber Anupama Padman in child kidnapping case

Kollam, Apr 29 (PTI) A court here on Monday dismissed the bail application filed by the third accused, a woman YouTuber, in the sensational kidnapping case of a six-year-old girl in Kollam district last year, in which a ransom demand of Rs 10 lakh was placed.

Additional Sessions Judge P N Vinod denied bail to the 20-year-old accused, Anupama Padman, who boasts a substantial following on YouTube.

The court directed that the accused shall remain an under-trial prisoner as it was a serious case of kidnapping children for ransom.

Public Prosecutor Sicin G Mundakkal said the prosecution had already filed for a trial under custody in the case.

"The court found that prima facie there is a strong case backed by scientific evidence and witness statements," Mundakkal said.

The case pertains to the kidnapping of a six-year-old girl, who was going home from tuition class with her elder brother. She was later found abandoned at a public ground here the next day.

Police had arrested Padmakumar, an engineering graduate, his homemaker wife Anitha Kumari, and their daughter Anupama Padman, based on a combination of scientific and circumstantial evidence.

As the incident gained widespread attention, the child was later abandoned.

Police had said that the family’s pressing financial issues were allegedly the motive behind the abduction.

The accused had tried to abduct the child twice before but didn’t succeed as she was accompanied by her mother and grandmother on those occasions, the police added. PTI