Gang planned to kidnap actress, demand huge ransom: Kerala Police
Kochi: A gang of impostors, arrested for allegedly threatening and trying to extort money from a South Indian actress, had planned to kidnap and hold her hostage and demand a huge ransom, a top police official said on Tuesday.
Eight of the 12 member gang, which hatched the conspiracy and tried to execute their plan have been arrested, while the other four are absconding, City Police Commissioner Vijay Sakhare said
"The gang of imposters, which established contact with Shamna Kasim and her family after coming up with a marriage proposal for her, had hatched a plan to kidnap the actress, hold her hostage in a hotel room and demand a huge ransom.
But it did not materialise," he told PTI.
Police said the gang had kept several models in their captivity after inviting them for assignments and extorted money from them. Their success prompted them to go in for a bigger operation and try to extort money from an actress like Shamna, police said.
They said the gang managed to collect details of the actress from those in the film industry after convincing them that they planned to produce movies.
The arrested gang members are also accused of keeping eight women, working as models, in their captivity in Palakkad in March and extorting money from them
Police have registered seven cases against the gang on the basis of separate complaints filed by Shamna and other models.
Widening the probe to the Malayalam film industry, police had on Monday summoned and taken the statements of popular comedian Dharmajan Bolgatty, whom some of the arrested gang members had allegedly contacted during the lockdown.
Police, however, clarified that the film personalities do not have any role in the episode.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
West Asia crisis: MEA establishes control room to assist Indians
New Delhi (PTI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has set up a control room to assist those affected by the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The MEA has said almost one crore Indian citizens live in West Asia and their safety and well-being is of "utmost priority" for New Delhi.
As the Iran-US conflict widened, the Indian embassy in Iran moved hundreds of Indian students from the Iranian capital of Tehran to safer locations.
"A Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region," the MEA said on Wednesday.
"The Control Room can be contacted from 9 am to 9 pm at: 1800118797 (Toll Free) +91 11 2301 2113, +91 11 2301 4104, +91 11 2301 7905," it added.
The US launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israel and American military bases in several Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The MEA on Tuesday noted that almost one crore Indian citizens live and work in the Gulf region, and their "safety and well-being is of utmost priority."
"We cannot be impervious to any development that negatively affects them," it said.
The MEA said New Delhi will continue to closely monitor the evolving situation and take relevant decisions in the national interest, adding it is in touch with the governments in the region as well as other key partners.
A Special Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region. Details are as below ⬇️
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) March 4, 2026
🔗 https://t.co/nK3d6SY9Pa pic.twitter.com/v2EhUI5B1x
