Ex-minister brings son home; no case

Nishant had been camping in Hardoi for over 15 days as Mishrikh Lok Sabha returning officer of the Youth Congress organisational elections. Around 5 am on Monday,he went missing and despite all efforts by the Congress leadership,police and local administration,he could not be located. His cellphone and other belongings were found in the hotel room.

On Tuesday afternoon,he was found in the outskirts of Lucknow,bearing minor injuries,barefoot and in muddy clothes. Hasmukh Patel said: “We are taking him back to Gujarat as there is no point in keeping him here. He is recovering but is still unable to recall what exactly took place. He told us that he left the hotel room for a morning walk. He went some distance by rickshaw and then started walking. About a kilometre from his hotel,someone hit him from behind,and he lost consciousness. When he regained consciousness,he found himself near Lucknow.”

The family,he said,does not wish to file any complaint as they live in Gujarat and it would be difficult to pursue any case in Uttar Pradesh. “Anyway,he is unable to recall anything,so we do not know who hit him,” he added.

Lucknow DIG Rajiv Krishna,who questioned Nishant,said he was “not coherent when we talked to him”.

“We asked him to explain the sequence of events from the time he went missing till the time he was found in Lucknow,but he had gaps in his memory,” Krishna said. “When we asked him if he had been the victim of any crime,he replied in the negative.”

Krishna said before Nishant left for Gujarat,he underwent a thorough medical check-up at the Balrampur hospital.

“He bore some scratches and bruises,” said Umesh Bahadur Singh,Station Officer,Kakori Police Station. Nishant had been found at Budheshwar crossing,an area under the jurisdiction of Kakori police.

No one from the Youth Congress was able to talk to Nishant after he was handed over to his family on Tuesday night. “We have not disturbed him after he met his father,we just wish him good health,” said Arvind Chaudhary,State Returning Officer of Youth Congress.