10 days before wedding, Hassan disappeared

The family says they were still hopeful that Hassan would be found in time for his wedding. So they approached the security forces. 8220;We couldn8217;t locate him despite our best efforts,8221; says Hassan8217;s father.

It was just the beginning of a search that was not to seen an end even in 17 years.

8220;We searched everywhere in the Valley8230;in jails, security camps and interrogation centres, but didn8217;t see any success,8221; says his father.

Ghulam Ahmed Lone says the search for his son took him as far as Karnataka. 8220;Somebody told me he was lodged in a jail in Karnataka. There was a dead end waiting for me there too,8221; he says.

Back in the Valley, the family says civic authorities did little to help trace Hassan. 8220;I met all top officers in the state8230;ministers, politicians, top bureaucrats8230;They promised me help but it never reached us,8221; says Hassan8217;s father.

8220;We want to know whether he is alive of dead. If he is alive let us meet him and if he is dead we want to give him a decent burial,8221; says the family.