Padma Shri recipient social worker Phulbhasan Bai Yadav was rescued during an alleged kidnapping attempt in Chattisgarh’s Rajnandgaon district on Tuesday morning, and three people including two women have been arrested, officials said.
Khushboo Sahu, a resident of Bhimitara, visited Yadav at her village in Sukuldihan at around 10:30 am and allegedly told her that a differently-abled woman sitting in a car outside wanted to click a selfie with her, a police official said.
When Yadav got out and got into the car, he sped off. The accused allegedly handcuffed her and gagged her with a piece of cloth.
Fortunately, a traffic police team conducting a routine check on the vehicle stopped the vehicle near Chikhli Police Station on Rajnandgaon-Khairagarh Road.
The accused told the police that the woman, who was handcuffed and gagged, was suffering from epilepsy, but one of the individuals recognized Yadav and saved her.
The three accused, Sahu, another woman and the car driver were taken to Sukuldihan Police Station. They are being interrogated, Rajnandgaon city police director Alexander Kiru said.
According to preliminary investigation, the main accused Sahu is associated with a self-help group and was in touch with Yadav for the last four months. The CSP said it was suspected that SHGs were mobilized in Bhimetara district in the name of employment training and funds were collected illegally.
He added that the motive behind the kidnapping will become clear after further investigations.
Phulbasan Bai Yadav was awarded the Padma Shri in 2012 for her work in the SHG movement.
Yadav started forming self-help groups in 2001, encouraging women to adopt the habit of saving small amounts of money as per their capabilities. Its network now includes nearly 2,000 women, working in social service and empowerment initiatives, as well as activities such as water and environmental conservation and organic farming. She has received many other prestigious honors.
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