CityweliveJaspal, a 32-year-old resident of Langroya village in Nawanshahr, is among the three young men who were reportedly abducted in Iran. He had aspirations of moving abroad for a better future and had approached a travel agent based in Hoshiarpur, who assured him that he would be sent to Australia.
The family managed to collect Rs 18 lakh with great difficulty and handed it over to the agent. Jaspal Singh is a father of two children—one aged three years and the other just three months old.
Ashok Kumar, the elder brother of Jaspal Singh, told that Jaspal was first flown to Dubai, where he was kept confined in a room for a month. “Later, he was taken to Iran, and as soon as he arrived there, he was abducted,” he stated.
Around 2 a.m. on the night of May 1 and 2, a phone call from Jaspal Singh shattered the peace of the family.
“Jaspal called and asked us to stay awake, and then abruptly ended the call. We were extremely frightened. At around 3 a.m., we received another call where he revealed that he and others had been kidnapped, and said that for his release, an additional Rs 18 lakh would be required,” Ashok further explained.
He mentioned that for nearly 15 days, the family continued to receive video calls in which they could see Jaspal being severely assaulted, screaming in agony and pleading for money. “By that time, we had already lodged a police complaint,” he added.
The family shared that for the past 14 days, they have had no updates about Jaspal. “We are completely in the dark about his condition or whether he is even safe,” Ashok said.
