Hyderabad: A man who ran an orphanage and forced the inmates to beg in front of offices of multinational corporations in Gachibowli was arrested on Thursday.
Police said M. James, 36, of Khammam, ran the Brahmaputra orphanage at Ameenpur with 14 boys and five girls, all under 14 years of age.
A few were orphans, the others were children from poor families who had been admitted by their parents so that they could get a good education. The children were rescued and sent to the state home.
The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights has issued notice to the Medak collector to submit a report. Police said James used to send groups of four to five every day to Gachibowli.
“He gave them tin boxes pasted with the name of the orphanage in three languages and made them beg for money from employees who come out for a break. On Monday, he collected Rs 5,000,” Gachi-bowli sub-inspector Ch Venkatesh said. The boxes were not opened from Tuesday.
Police booked James under the Prevention of Begging Act and Juvenile Justice Act and sent him on remand. The registration of the orphanage had expired in 2012.
