A couple from Gujarat and their three-year-old daughter were allegedly kidnapped in Libya by kidnappers demanding Rs 2 crore, news agency PTI reported.
Kismatsinh Chavda, his wife Heenaben, and their daughter Devanshi were trying to immigrate to Portugal, chasing a new life in Europe when they were held hostage in Libya. The trio from Badalpura village in Gujarat’s Mehsana had pinned their hopes on a fresh start in Portugal because Chavda’s brother is already settled there.
Mehsana Superintendent of Police Himanshu Solanki detailed how the family trusted a Portugal-based agent to guide their journey. Instead of safety, peril awaited them in the North African country along the Mediterranean coast.
Their path took a deceptive turn on November 29. The family boarded a flight from Ahmedabad to Dubai, only to be shuttled onward to Benghazi City in Libya, right into the kidnappers’ clutches.
“Chavda’s brother is settled in Portugal, and he was travelling with the help of an agent based in Portugal. The family was travelling with the intention to settle there, and the agents involved in the case are not Indians,” Solanki explained.
Word of the nightmare reached the family’s relatives in Mehsana through chilling calls from the abductors, who insist on the hefty payout.
Mehsana Collector SK Prajapati jumped into action after the kin approached him on Friday. According to the PTI report, he promptly alerted the state government and the Ministry of External Affairs, setting official wheels in motion for their rescue.
Collector Prajapati said the victim’s relatives approached him on December 13, 2025. “The matter has been brought to the notice of the State Government as well as the Ministry of External Affairs,” he said.
A similar incident took place in October when four people, including a couple from Gujarat’s Gandhinagar district were allegedly held captive while heading to Australia. They were held hostage in Iran and were released only after the Indian government intervened.
