Azerbaijan kidnap, torture, kidney trade threat: Indian duo's US journey horror
India Today
What began as a dream of reaching the US turned into a nightmare for two youths from Gujarat, who were kidnapped, tortured, and threatened with organ trafficking in Azerbaijan. However, they were swiftly rescued by India authorities in 'Operation Mahisagar' after S Jaishankar was alerted by the Anand MP.
For Gujarat's 22-year-old Dhruv Patel and Deepika Patel (32), it was a longstanding dream to settle in the US. The allure of the American dream got them in touch with a Mumbai-based agent, who promised to send them to the US through the illegal "donkey route". However, the dream turned into a horrifying ordeal for the two youths, who were kidnapped in Azerbaijan, tortured and threatened with organ trafficking. They were eventually rescued by Indian authorities after the MP from Anand alerted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
How did the youths reach Azerbaijan? What ordeal did they face? How were they rescued? We will answer all these questions and the nightmare that Dhruv and Deepika had to face.
The youths, who hail from Kanthariya in Gujarat's Anand district, started their journey on January 30. From Anand, they reached Vadodara and eventually Delhi. The duo met at the Delhi airport. As mentioned earlier, their journey was facilitated by a Mumbai-based agent via the "donkey route". Dhruv paid around Rs 35 lakh to the agent, while the woman shelled out around Rs 15 lakh.
Now, what is this donkey or dunki route? It is an illegal migration route mainly used by people from India and South Asian nations to reach the US. However, the journey is arduous, which involves crossing through multiple countries and forests.
Now, Azerbaijan, which lies at the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, is a key transit point in the complex network of the donkey route to the US.
Dhruv and Deepika, unaware of what lay ahead of them, reached Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, on February 1. Upon landing, the agent asked them to switch off their mobile phones.
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