Odisha man missing for 18 years rescued from Jammu & Kashmir

In an emotional homecoming, a young man from Sundargarh district finally returned home after 18 years on Tuesday, reuniting with the family that never gave up hope. Purusottam Gouda from Sunaparbat village under Lathikata block had gone missing in 2008 at the age of 13. After his mother’s death, he was raised by his aunt Ullasi Gouda.

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According to sources, the person who took him away had deceitfully left him in the custody of a man named Kuldeep Gupta in the Samba district of Jammu & Kashmir, where Purusottam reportedly lived in captivity for years.

Determined to bring him back, Ullasi had approached several organisations and individuals seeking help. In January this year, a phone call from an unknown number had revealed Purusottam’s whereabouts. She then reached out to the local MLA of Raghunathpali, who wrote to Western Range DIG Brijesh Rai requesting intervention.

Acting on the DIG’s instructions, Tangarpalli police travelled to Jammu & Kashmir last week and successfully rescued Purusottam. After 18 long years, the emotional reunion at the station left Ullasi overwhelmed with joy.

“A young man named Purusottam Gouda, from Sunaparbat village in Suidi panchayat of our Lathikata block, had been missing since 2008. His aunt, Ullasi Gouda, had been searching for him for a very long time. After he went missing, she visited many places and shared her pain, but no solution could be found,” Raghunathpali MLA, Durga Charan Tanti, said.

“Last January, she had approached me and shared her plight. I later coordinated with the police administration and also informed DIG Brijesh Kumar Rai through a letter. The police administration took proper action and successfully located the young man. He was in Jammu & Kashmir and had been residing there for quite some time,” the MLA stated.

“When I was about 14 or 15 years old, a Punjabi man had taken me with him in a vehicle, promising to teach me how to drive. But once we got there, he kept making me work and didn’t even provide enough food. So, I left and started working for someone else, but he also didn’t pay me,” Purusottam Gouda expressed.

“In 2022, I remembered a phone number and called home. They told me to give them my location and said they would come to get me. I was in the Samba district of Jammu & Kashmir, working for a man named Kuldeep Gupta. I finally left on a Sunday. It feels wonderful to be back and see my mother after all these years. I am very happy,” the man added.