A Gujarati couple named Pankaj and his wife Nisha were held captive in Iran after being kidnapped, reportedly from Hyderabad. Within 24 hours of their family sending a WhatsApp message to Minister of State Home Affairs, Harsh Sanghvi, seeking help from the government, the couple was rescued. Now, their heartfelt message to Minister Sanghvi is doing rounds on social media.
In this heartfelt message, the Gujarati couple expressed their gratitude to Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi and all the persons involved in their rescue operation. The couple conveyed their appreciation, saying, “Dear Harshbhai Sahib, we can’t thank you enough. You have come to us as Lord Krishna on the day of Ashadhi Dooj.”
The desire of moving abroad had lured them into the trap of fraud agents. Like in many previous instances, the desire to go to the US at any cost became a nightmare for the young couple.
The Gujarati couple was kidnapped in the garb of taking them to America. But thanks to the prompt action of the MoS Home Harsh Sanghvi and the authorities, the couple was rescued within 24 hours of the family getting in touch with the Minister seeking help to rescue their kin.
The kidnappers sent a torture video, demanding ransom
As per media reports, the Patel couple who are said to be residents of Naroda, Ahmedabad left for America illegally. However, Pankaj Bharatbhai Patel was kidnapped before he and his wife could reach America. Reports claim that he was kept in Hyderabad from 3rd to 11th June and it seems that he was taken to Iran from there.
Later, the kidnappers sent a video to their family demanding ransom in exchange for their freedom. In the said video, the kidnappers made the young man lie face down in the bathroom and then stabbed him numerous times. In the video, Pankaj was seen crying and requesting his brother, “Brother, these people will kill me. Send the money soon.”
In the horrifying video, a kidnapper was also seen constantly cutting his ribs. This video is so terrifying that it is not even possible to publish it.
Soon after receiving the video, Pankaj’s family filed a police complaint. In the police complaint, the victim’s brother stated that Pankaj made a deal with an agent at Gandhinagar Sargasan for Rs 1.15 crores to illegally enter America. The agent told Pankaj, that he would first take the couple to Hyderabad and from there another agent would send them to America via Dubai, Iran route. However, his brother-in-law was kidnapped and kept in Tehran, Iran.
Gujarat Government swiftly retrieves kidnapped Gujarati Couple from Iran after getting a WhatsApp Message
After the unfortunate incident, the victim’s family reached out to the Mos Home Harsh Sanghvi seeking his help to rescue the couple. The family sent a WhatsApp message to Sanghvi around 9 PM on Sunday night, the 18th of June.
Within 24 hours, Pankaj and Nisha Patel were freed from the clutches of the kidnappers.
It is important to note that at this time Minister Sanghvi was busy in overseeing the preparations for Yoga Day in Surat and Ratha Yatra in Ahmedabad.
Despite that, the Home Minister dedicated two nights, Sunday and Monday, to get the case investigated by a high-level team of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch. Additionally, he personally reached out to various agencies including the Ministry of External Affairs, GOI, Central IB, RA&W, and INTERPOL.
The Minister also contacted John Mai, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy in Iran, in order to trace Pankaj and Nisha. Resultantly, the couple’s location was eventually discovered, and with the assistance of the police, both of them were successfully rescued. After the rescue operations, the couple received necessary medical attention before arranging their safe return to India.
Dear Harshbhai Sanghvi, You have come to us as Lord Krishna on the day of Ashadhi Dooj – Pankaj and Nisha
Through the family, Pankaj and his wife Nisha sent a thank you message to Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi which has gone viral on social media. In this message, the Gujarati couple has written, “Dear Harshbhai Sahib, we can’t thank you enough. You have come to us as Lord Krishna on the day of Ashadhi Dooj.”
Thanking the Home Minister, the family wrote, “Our son Pankaj and daughter-in-law Nisha were held in Iran and held for ransom. We reported this to Home Minister Harsh Sanghvi through a WhatsApp message around 9 pm on Sunday night. Despite the fact that he was preparing for Surat’s Yoga Day program and Rath Yatra programs, he got the case continuously investigated by the high-level dedicated team of Ahmedabad Crime Branch, Ministry of External Affairs; Contacted GOI, Central IB, RA&W, INTERPOL, and sought help by contacting John Mai, Deputy Chief of Mission, Indian Embassy in Iran, Tehran.”
The family further noted that the couple has left for their homeland due to the efforts of Home Minister Sanghvi Sahib.
They also rang the bells of caution for others and stated let nothing happen to anyone like what happened with us, let no one go abroad under the tutelage of agents illegally, this is the wrong way.
Reportedly, the agent who took money by luring Pankaj Patel to America is currently absconding. The Ahmedabad Police has launched a search operation to apprehend him.
Earlier, a youth from Talala was rescued from Myanmar
This is not the first time that the Gujarat government has come to the aid of Gujaratis stranded abroad. Earlier, a youth from Talala, Gujarat was illegally detained in a room in Myanmar. He was lured abroad on the false pretext of a job. Later, on the instructions of the Minister of State for Home Affairs Harsh Sanghvi, the Gir-Somnath police safely brought back the youth to India.
His father had filed a complaint at the Talala Police Station. Even back then Mos Home Harsh Sanghvi instructed the police to take this incident seriously and bring this young man back to Gujarat at any cost.
Minister maintained constant contact with the Immigration Department of the Government of India and the Immigration Department of Myanmar.
Afterward, Nirav’s bio-data, along with comprehensive details about his visa, passport, and his specific location in Yangon City, Myanmar, was provided to the Immigration Department of the Government of India. Working in collaboration with the Myanmar Immigration Department, the agencies successfully secured the release of Nirav, who had been detained in Yangon City, Myanmar, alongside other individuals trapped in similar circumstances. Finally, on February 19, Nirav Bamrotiya was safely repatriated to his hometown from Yangon City, Myanmar.
In this case, you can read a special interview with the victim Nirav and his father by OpIndia by clicking on this link.
