Arafat arrived in Chennai on June 22 after boarding a train in Bangalore. Police found him walking aimlessly on a road near the central railway station late at night on June 23 and handed him over to Don Bosco Anbu Illam through the Child Help Line authorities.
Police said the boy only gave his name and city from where he came from. Mosques in Chennai and Bangalore were requested to give details about the missing boy in their congregations, they said.
The boy's father, an autorickshaw driver, was informed that his son was in the city and arrived here today with his friend to take him back home.
The authorities would hand over the boy to his father after cross checking his identity and completing certain formalities, police said, adding that during the probe, it was found that the boy had gone missing on previous occasions too.