Archive · 11 Sep 2026
Aadhaar OTP Leads Police to Missing Bengaluru Teen
Tanishka is an 18-year-old student from Bengaluru who went missing on January 31.
She had left home with a younger friend, saying they were going to college.
The girls did not take their phones or most of their belongings, making them difficult to find.
Police said they travelled to temples and then went to Male Mahadeshwara Hills.
There, they reportedly met two young men and later separated.
Police said Tanishka married one of the men and lived with him in a village.
Months later, she used her Aadhaar details for a government scheme and gave her husband’s phone number for an OTP.
Police followed that phone number and found her, but the other girl is still missing.
Eighteen-year-old second-year PUC student Tanishka disappeared from Vidyaranyapura, Bengaluru, on January 31.
She left home with a minor friend, saying they were going to college, and carried only Aadhaar cards and college bags.
Police said the girls travelled to temples and Male Mahadeshwara Hills before separating and going with two young men.
The CID said Tanishka married one of the men and was living in a village in Kanakapura taluk, where she was found married and pregnant.
Investigators traced her after she used Aadhaar details for a government scheme and entered her husband’s phone number to receive an OTP.
- Who
- Tanishka, an 18-year-old second-year PUC student, her minor friend, and investigators from the Criminal Investigation Department.
- What
- Tanishka was found more than seven months after disappearing from Bengaluru after police traced an Aadhaar-linked OTP phone number.
- When
- She disappeared on January 31 and was traced earlier this week; investigators described the breakthrough as occurring on Tuesday.
- Where
- She was found in a village in Kanakapura taluk after leaving Vidyaranyapura in Bengaluru.
- Why
- Police said Tanishka felt neglected at home; investigators also said she and her friend had intended to end their lives before meeting two young men who dissuaded them.
- Missing date
- January 31
- Age
- 18
- Last reported destination
- Male Mahadeshwara Hills
- Investigation transfer
- The Karnataka High Court directed the CID to take over the case in April after the parents filed a habeas corpus petition.
- Search effort
- Police searched more than 100 locations, including cities and places in Karnataka and other states.
- Breakthrough
- Tanishka’s Aadhaar details were used for a government scheme, with her husband’s phone number entered to receive an OTP.
- Current status
- Tanishka was handed over to her parents after being produced before the Karnataka High Court; the minor girl remains missing.
