Alipurduar: A 21-year-old migrant worker from Falakata went missing from a train while returning home on vacation from Kerala, leaving his family in deep distress.
Hanzala Firdous, a mason and resident of Lachman Dabri under Mayradanga Gram Panchayat, began his train journey from Kollam, Kerala, on October 12. He was scheduled to reach Jalpaiguri Road station aboard the Vivek Express on Sunday to celebrate Diwali with his family. However, since October 13, all communication with him has been lost, despite repeated attempts by his family to contact him.
Hanzala’s father, Ekabbar Ali, said: “On October 13, my son was still in the train coach. From our phone conversation, I realised there were some issues in his compartment. Some passengers were not treating him well. After that, we could not contact him at all.”
The incident has raised concerns about passenger safety on trains and whether another Bengali youth may have fallen victim to a crime while in a different state. Unable to trace their son, the family reported the matter to Falakata Police, and a formal abduction complaint was filed at Maynaguri GRP on October 15. Police have launched an investigation and are coordinating with Kerala authorities to locate the missing youth.
In an emotional plea, Hanzala’s parents said: “Please, by any means, bring our son back. We have been living through a nightmare for seven days.” When contacted, the Maynaguri GRP declined to comment. Falakata Police Station IC Abhishek Bhattacharya stated: “The complaint has been filed at Maynaguri GRP. We are making every effort to trace the youth and are coordinating with Kerala police, but so far, no trace has been found.”