Wives of Bengal labourers abducted in Iraq meet BJP leaders

Wives of two West Bengal labourers, who have been reportedly adducted in conflict- ridden Iraq's Mosul district, today met senior BJP leaders and requested them to forward their cases to the Centre.
Deepali, wife of Samar Tikadar, and Namita, wife of Khokon Sikdar, visited the BJP office here during the day and met the leaders.
Tikadar and Sikdar worked for Iraq-based construction company Nurul Al Ameen in Mosul. While Tikadar worked in its masonry department, Sikdar was a carpenter.
Namita, who was accompanied by her four-year-old son, said, "I had spoken to him (Sikdar) over phone for the last time on June 15. He had then told me that they (Sikdar and Tikadar) had been abducted by a terrorist group. Since then his phone is switched off."

The family could, however, get through his number a few days ago but the person who answered spoke in Arabic.
"I handed over the phone to my nephew as he understands and speaks Arabic. He later told me that the person on the other side said that there was no person in the name of Khokhon," Namita said.

Dipali, who was accompanied by her 11-year-old son and five-year-old daughter, too had not heard from her husband since last month. Tikadar had visited his native village in Nadia district in August last year.
Both women said they had since spoken to the local and state administration but their pleas were not addressed.

BJP state general secretary Shamik Bhattacharya met them and assured them that the party would do its best to bring back their husbands.
"Although the state government has nothing much to do about it, they should have promptly contacted the Centre which they didn't. The women have come to us after about a month and we will write to Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to intervene in the matter and do the needful to bring back these persons from Bengal at the earliest," Bhattacharya said.