Maha: Man held for kidnapping builder over financial dispute

A 58-year-old real estate developer was rescued by the police on Wednesday morning, 18 hours after he was allegedly kidnapped from the MIDC area of Maharashtra's Jalna city, an official said.

The police arrested Zaker YaseenRathod (45), who owns a fabrication unit, for allegedly kidnapping Saklecha Nagar resident Shankarlal Sharma on Tuesday over a financial dispute, Sadar Bazar police chief Sanjay Deshmukh said.

When Sharma went missing from the MIDC area on Tuesday and could not be contacted, his son Kunwal lodged a complaint with the Sadar Bazar police station, he said.

On examining the CCTV footage from the area, the police found that Sharma was last seen with Rathod, the official said.

Sharma was later found in a semi-unconscious state inside a car at MIDC Shendra in Aurangabad and was admitted to a hospital, he said.

Rathod had allegedly called Sharma to the MIDC area and offered him coffee laced with sedative and held him captive for 18 hours, the official said.

There was some financial dispute between the accused and the victim, the official said, adding that a case has been registered against Rathod under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.