One of 7 kidnapped Indians returns home from Afghanistan
New Delhi: Ten months after being kidnapped in Afghanistan's Baghlan province, one of the seven Indians has returned to India, the External Affairs Ministry said Monday.
It said India continued to work closely with the Afghan government for safe and early return of the remaining six Indian nationals.
The seven Indian engineers were kidnapped by Taliban militants in the restive northern Baghlan province on May 6 last year. India has been requesting the Afghan government to secure release of the Indians.
"One of the seven Indian nationals, who was kidnapped in Baghlan province of Afghanistan in May 2018, has safely returned to India," the MEA said.
"We are grateful to the Government of Afghanistan for their support in securing the release and repatriation of the Indian national," it said.
The Indian engineers were working on a project for the construction of a power sub-station and they were kidnapped by Taliban militants from the vicinity of Cheshma-e-Sher area.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had taken up the issue with the Afghan government on multiple occasions.
India has been carrying reconstruction activities in the war-torn country. It has already provided at least USD 2 billion aid to Afghanistan.
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Karnataka by-polls: Cong ahead in Bagalkot, BJP leads in Davanagere South
Bengaluru (PTI): Trends show Congress and BJP have maintained leads respectively in Karnataka's Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly seats, where counting of votes is underway on Monday, for the bypolls held for two seats on April 9.
The polls were necessitated by the deaths of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkot) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davanagere South).
According to the Election Commission, Congress party's Umesh Meti was ahead of BJP's Veerabhadrayya Charantimath by a margin of 9,969 votes in Bagalkot.
In Davanagere South, BJP's Srinivas T Dasakariyappa was leading over Congress party's Samarth Mallikarjun by a margin of 8,539 votes.
Nine and 25 candidates were in the fray, respectively in the Bagalkot and Davanagere South Assembly segments.
