Baramulla: After dramatic kidnapping by unknown men from his home on Wednesday morning, Vice President Municipal Committee Watergam Baramulla, Meraj ud Din Malla (a BJP activist), returned home safely in the evening and police took him for questioning.
However, police claimed that he was rescued by police and investigation into the kidnapping is on. .
The kidnapping comes days after a BJP leader and his two family members were killed in Bandipora. The political workers have been seeking security in Kashmir.
Sources said that Malla, a resident of village Marazigund in Watergam, was walking on the road outside his home when a white-colour car stopped near him. Some persons came out of the car and talked to him for some time, then bundled him inside the car and sped away.
Sources said the cell phone of Malla was spotted lying on the road. It may have been thrown away by his kidnappers.
Soon after the incident, teams of police, CRPF and army reached the spot and launched a hunt to nab the kidnappers.
In the evening, Inspector General of Police Kashmir Vijay Kumar told a news agency that the person has been rescued by police.” He declined to divulge further details.
Police sources said that details would be revealed after Malla’s “interrogation” as some independent sources claim that the BJP activist was not kidnapped by militants but had some money transaction issue with some party.
Malla is the son of senior BJP member Gulam Mohammad Malla, who joined the BJP in 2012. Since then, father and son have both been associated with BJP and Malla was elected vice president of Municipal Committee Watergam in 2018.
Soon after Malla’s abduction, his daughter in a video massage had appealed to the kidnappers to release her father.
“We don’t know if he was kidnapped, but if anyone has kidnapped my father, please release him. We have no one else than our father,” his daughter said in the video message.
However, once Malla reached home, his daughter, in other video message said that the entire family was happy that he is safe and back home.
