Black Squad – Episode 22: The Vanishing Passenger
Opening Scene: A Train Mystery
Location: Mumbai Central Railway Station, 10:45 PM
The Mumbai-bound Deccan Express pulls into Platform 6 at Mumbai Central. The usual chaos unfolds—passengers pushing through, railway announcers calling out train schedules, and porters dragging luggage. Amid the bustle, a railway attendant, checking the reserved compartments, notices something odd.
Seat B4-23 is empty. It was reserved for Meera Sharma, a 24-year-old journalist from Pune. Her suitcase and handbag remain, but there's no sign of her.
The train conductor confirms that she boarded at Pune Junction and was last seen at Kalyan Station. However, when they check the station's CCTV footage, there is no record of her exiting the train.
Case Assigned to Black Squad
At Mumbai Crime Investigation HQ, ACP Sulaiman Qazi is briefing his team when DIG Shamsher Singh enters.
DIG Shamsher Singh: "We have a case. A woman has vanished from a moving train between Pune and Mumbai. Her belongings are still in the compartment, but she's missing."
Arjun Rathore frowns. "How does someone disappear from a locked train?"
Imran Wani, the tech and forensics expert, checks the passenger manifest.
Imran: "Meera Sharma. 24 years old. Journalist. If she was kidnapped, it was clean—no signs of struggle."
DIG Shamsher hands them the case.
DIG Shamsher: "Solve this fast. We don't want the media blowing this up."
Investigation Begins
The team splits up:
Arjun Rathore heads to Mumbai Central to investigate the train.
Imran Wani examines CCTV footage from all stations along the route.
ACP Sulaiman Qazi meets Meera's family in Pune.
At Mumbai Central, Arjun inspects the B4 compartment.
Arjun kneels and shines his flashlight under the seat. There's a small, black bag stuffed deep inside. He pulls it out and unzips it. Inside is a note scribbled on a crumpled paper:
"The train never stops for those who seek escape."
Arjun: "This wasn't a random abduction. She was running from something."
Meanwhile, Imran examines the Kalyan Station CCTV footage. Meera enters her compartment at Pune. She is seen talking to two passengers—Ajay Tiwari (34, businessman) and Nikhil Sharma (29, software engineer).
At Kalyan Junction, the cameras show a third man boarding the train. He enters Meera's compartment, but never exits at Mumbai.
Imran: "Who the hell is this guy?"
Three Suspects Emerge
1. Ajay Tiwari – A businessman sitting across from Meera.
2. Nikhil Sharma – A co-passenger who reported her missing.
3. Mysterious Man – Seen entering the train at Kalyan but not exiting.
The team tracks down Ajay Tiwari and Nikhil Sharma for questioning.
Interrogation
Ajay Tiwari (Businessman)
Claims he talked to Meera for a while.
Says she was nervous and kept checking her phone.
Claims he fell asleep before Kalyan Station.
Nikhil Sharma (Software Engineer)
Says Meera looked scared.
Claims he was reading a book and didn't notice anything unusual.
Both men have alibis, but Nikhil has a criminal record—a past case of fraud.
Arjun leans forward. "You have a history of scamming people. How do we know you're not lying?"
Nikhil smirks. "If I kidnapped her, why would I report her missing?"
Imran interrupts. "Because you want to make it look like you had nothing to do with it."
They hold Nikhil for further questioning, but they have no direct evidence.
Meanwhile, a forensic report identifies the Mysterious Man from CCTV as Rakesh Verma (38)—a wanted con artist involved in financial fraud and human trafficking.
Chase Through Mumbai
When Black Squad tracks down Verma's hideout in Dharavi, he tries to escape on a bike.
Arjun chases him on foot through narrow alleyways.
Sulaiman jumps onto a moving auto-rickshaw and cuts him off.
Imran fires a warning shot, forcing Verma to surrender.
The Truth Uncovered
Under interrogation, Verma confesses everything.
Meera was not kidnapped. She faked her disappearance.
She stole ₹20 lakh from an illegal gambling syndicate.
The gang found out and wanted their money back.
She tried to escape to Goa using a new identity.
Verma helped Meera disappear at Kalyan in exchange for a cut of her money. She is now hiding in a safe house in Navi Mumbai.
Final Showdown
Black Squad raids the safe house.
Arjun kicks down the door.
Sulaiman and Imran clear the rooms.
They find Meera hiding inside a closet.
She breaks down in tears.
Meera: "I had no choice… they would have killed me."
DIG Shamsher orders her arrest but promises witness protection if she testifies against the gambling syndicate.
Conclusion
The gambling syndicate is busted, and Verma is taken into custody. Meera cooperates with the police and is placed under witness protection.
The episode ends with ACP Sulaiman and his team standing at Mumbai Crime HQ.
Sulaiman (to his team): "One case solved. A hundred more to go."
End of Episode 22.