Mumbai police rescue over 20 children after man takes them hostage

Accused Rohit Arya

More than 20 children were rescued after a man took them hostage in Mumbai’s Powai area.

The man, identified as Rohit Arya who appeared to be mentally unstable, was taken into custody, news agency PTI reported. The dramatic situation unfolded at R A Studio near the L&T building over an hour on Thursday afternoon.

Before the children were rescued, Arya released a video on social media, saying he wanted to speak to a few people and ask them questions, and he did not want money.

"I am Rohit Arya. Instead of dying by suicide, I have made a plan and am holding some children hostage here. I don't have many demands; I have very simple demands, moral demands, ethical demands, and a few questions. I want to talk to some people, ask them questions, and if I have counter-questions to their answers, I want to ask them back. But I want these answers. I don't want anything else. I'm not a terrorist, nor do I demand a lot of money, and I certainly don't want anything immoral," Arya said in the video.

The children, boys and girls around 15 years old, had been called for an `audition', the report added.