Mumbai: Missing Borivli teen found standing beside police officer after prayer in Mathura

A threeday search for a missing 13yearold girl from Borivli ended in an extraordinary and emotional moment in Mathura Uttar Pradesh when a police officer searching for her found the teenager standing nearby at a temple mdash moments after he had stopped to pray for helpThe girl a devoted follower of Lord Krishna and Radha had gone missing from her home in Gorai on August 22 without informing her family She lived with her mother her father who works as an autorickshaw driver and her elder sister The family is originally from UP Her parents approached the Borivli police after she went missing following which a missingperson investigation was launchedAccording to police the girl had been deeply religious since childhood and had a particular devotion to Lord Krishna and Radha She would make idols with her own hands worship them and even offer them food She also regularly watched television serials based on Lord Krishna and other religious themesPSI Surendra Lokhande in jeans is felicitated by Sr PI Pushpalata Mandale at Borivli police station on Sept 2 PicsBy Special ArrangementAccording to the police the family believed that the girl was experiencing mental health difficulties and had brought her to Mumbai with the intention of getting her treated Even after coming to the city the girl reportedly spent much of her time in religious activitiesThe first clueAfter the girlrsquos disappearance investigators examined the mobile phone of her mother Police said they found significant clues in the Google search historyldquoWe found that the girl had searched for Mathura as well as several temples and religious places associated with Lord Krishnardquo police saidldquoThis gave us an indication that she may have travelled to MathurardquoThe temple in Mathura Uttar Pradesh where PSI Lokhande found the missing teenagerCCTV footage subsequently showed the girl travelling by autorickshaw to Borivli railway station and boarding the Golden Temple Mail train which stops at Mathura Junction Police said the girl had reportedly broken open her money box before leaving home and was carrying only around R300 She had no mobile phone making it difficult for investigators to trace her movementsUnder the guidance of the DCP North Senior Police Inspector Pushpalata Mandale and Police Inspector Crime Digvijay Patil PSI Surendra Lokhande of the Missing Persons Search Team of Borivli police station PC Prabhakar Gawde Pramod Chaudhary WPC Shanti Shingda and PC Vishnu Ghatol then travelled to Mathura to search for herThe searchThe police team searched extensively across Mathura and surrounding religious centres including Vrindavan Nidhivan the ghats Barsana and other places associated with Lord Krishna and RadhaThe 13yearold girl fourth from right poses with the team from Borivli police station that took part in the search effort PicBY Special ArrangementOfficers checked temples ashrams dharamshalas railway routes CCTV footage and places where free food and accommodation are provided to pilgrimsldquoWe spoke to volunteers devotees and other people at these places We were told that thousands of people come to such places every day making the search extremely difficultrdquo said PSI Surender LokhandeThe team also approached religious figures for assistance and requested their help in tracing the girl The officers continued moving from one temple to another from ashrams to dharamshalas and through crowded areas where pilgrims lined up for free food and accommodationOfficerrsquos prayerOn September 1 after three days of searching the team was exhausted and still had no confirmed information about the girls whereabouts Lokhande said that at one point he stood on a raised platform and looked across the crowd hoping to spot the missing teenagerldquoAfter that I went and stood in front of the idol of Lord Krishna at the Radha Rani Temple in Barsana I folded my hands closed my eyes and prayed to God for helprdquo Lokhande recalled ldquoMy eyes were closed for some time When I opened them and looked to my left and right I suddenly saw the same missing girl standing on my right siderdquo he saidInitially Lokhande said he could not believe what he was seeing ldquoI took out the girls photograph on my mobile phone and compared it with the girl standing there To make sure I called out her name She immediately looked at me and asked lsquoHow do you know mersquordquo he recalledThe officer immediately alerted the rest of the team and informed police personnel deployed in uniform inside the temple premises ldquoWe told her lsquoBeta we have been looking for you We have come from Borivli police station to take you homersquordquo he saidThe officers then spoke to the girl at length and gained her confidence before taking her into their careGirlrsquos accountAccording to police the girl said she did not know who had provided her food or clothes during parts of her journey She reportedly told investigators that she kept seeing Lord Krishna walking ahead of her and followed him eventually reaching the MathuraBarsana regionAfter completing the necessary formalities the police team brought the girl safely back to Mumbai by trainpopcorn numberAug 22 descDay girl went missing classDefaultIllustrationsUday Mohite1 On August 22 the 13yearold caught an auto to Borivli railway station ultimately boarding the Golden Temple Mail train On reaching Mathura junction in Uttar Pradesh the girl visited famous sites associated with Lord Krishna and Radha2 After the family lodged a missing person complaint the police examined the girlrsquos search history and CCTV footage following in her footsteps to the pilgrimage city3 After three days of searching famous religious sites in Mathura an exhausted PSI Surendra Lokhande offered a prayer in front of a statue of Lord Krishna at the Radha Rani Temple in Barsana4 When he opened his eyes PSI Lokhande was shocked to see the girl next to him She was subsequently brought back to the city by train