Sushma Swaraj exposes 'abduction' of Indian in Serbia as 'stage-managed', calls video proof 'fake'
Responding to a tweet by a person named Rajeev Sharma that his brother Vinay Mahajan had been kidnapped in Serbia and that his life was at stake, Sushma Swaraj said that Mahajan had been found and was in the safe custody of Serbian authorities.
In Short
- Rajiv, I have all the facts before me. Your brother Vinay Mahajan was not abducted: Sushma.
- Vinay has been released by Serbian police. He is returning on March 25, she said.
- He stage-managed his own abduction and the video is fake, Sushma added.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who has been lauded for coming to the rescue of Indians facing discrimination or living in distress abroad, has found much to her disappointment that a "kidnapped" person in Serbia stage-managed in own abduction.
Sushma termed the abduction "stage-managed" and the video posted as proof of that "fake".
She was responding to a tweet on Thursday by a person named Rajeev Sharma that his brother Vinay Mahajan had been kidnapped in Serbia and the kidnappers were threatening to kill him unless paid money.
@SushmaSwaraj please help my brother his life in big trouble somebody kidnap in Serbia country and ask him send the money unless we kill him- rajeev sharma (@rajivsharma103) March 21, 2017
The video accompanying the tweet showed a shirtless man with his hands tied being beaten up with a baton.
@SushmaSwaraj pic.twitter.com/OeVLqucZ0K- rajeev sharma (@rajivsharma103) March 21, 2017
Yesterday evening, after getting to the truth of the matter, Sushma said, "The abduction was stage-managed and she knew the whole truth of the matter."
VIDEO FAKE, ABDUCTION STAGE-MANAGED: SUSHMA
"Rajiv - I have all the facts before me. Your brother was not abducted. He stage-managed his own abduction and the video is fake," she tweeted.
The External Affairs Minister went on to say, "@Indiainserbia intervened and your brother has been released by Serbian police. He is returning on March 25."
Sushma also retweeted a video by Sharma sent on Wednesday, showing the said Mahajan allegedly being ill-treated by the so-called kidnappers.
CONFUSING TWEETS CLOUDING TRUTH
In confusing tweets, Sharma first claimed that his brother was kidnapped in Serbia and the kidnappers were asking for money or else they would kill him.
The minister responded that Indian Ambassador to Serbia Sanjay Verma said that Mahajan had been found and was in the safe custody of Serbian authorities.
Sharma later tweeted that Mahajan had entered a refugee camp in Serbia, as guided by an agent.
Formerly a part of Yugoslavia, Serbia became an independent republic in 2006 when the Balkan country crumbled.
According to the Indian Embassy in Belgrade, there are only a handful of NRIs and persons of Indian origin (PIOs) in Serbia and there is no Indian community association there.
Reacting to a separate complaint of nearly 500 Indian workers being deprived of salaries in Bahrain, Sushma tweeted, "Indian Embassy in Bahrain is seized of this matter and will help them."
Also read | No Indian casualty in the UK Parliament attack reported, says Sushma Swaraj
(WITH INPUTS FROM PTI, IANS)