Gulf News
By Aftab Kazmi, Bureau Chief
Published: April 23, 2008, 00:17

Murli Bhagtani went missing after going bankrupt in June 2006.

Al Ain: The daughter of a Dubai-based Indian diamond merchant who disappeared about two years ago is still trying to find her father.

Murli Bhagtani, 55, went missing after going bankrupt in June 2006. He reportedly boarded an Indian fishermen's boat from Khor Fakkan but neither he nor the boat reached their destination - the Indian State of Gujarat.

The Bhagtani family in India, however, did not file a missing person's report with police, fearing repercussions of Bhagtani's escape and his financial obligations.

Dashika Afarpota, Bhagtani's daughter who now lives in Dubai, said the family tried to search for Bhagtani.

"All of my relatives have now given up hope and have abandoned the search. I am the eldest of three children and cannot sit idle," said Dashika.

Ordeal

She said Bhagtani got on the boat on June 29, 2006, and called his family in India to tell them he would be home in a few days.

"This was papa's last communication with us," said Dashika, adding her father is a diabetic and has high blood pressure. He also has heart problems.

She said a fellow businessman cheated her father, which resulted in a trail of financial difficulties for Bhagtani along with several other diamond merchants in Dubai.

"An Indian businessman even confiscated papa's passport," she said.

Bhagtani had no other option except to escape from the country, she said.

"I am not justifying papa's escape but am requesting help in finding my father. You should understand the ordeal my family and I have been going through for the last two years," she said with tears in her eyes.

A Pakistani journalist, said Dashika, also misled the family saying Bhagtani was in a Karachi jail along with numerous Indian fishermen.

"This man [the journalist] was a frequent visitor to Dubai and one of papa's acquaintances," she said.

This information also prevented the family from lodging a missing report with the police here, said added.

Dashika then contacted the Ansar Burney Trust in Pakistan to help secure Bhagtani's release. Sarim Burney, a trust official, later searched for Bhagtani in Karachi prisons and said was not in Pakistani custody.

She also contacted the Indian company with which the boat was registered. The company, she said, told her the boat was still missing along with the fishermen on board.

A complaint regarding the missing boat had already been filed with the Indian shipping authorities.

The Burney Trust also wrote a letter to the Indian High Commission in Islamabad requesting help. S.K. Reddy, a counsellor at the High Commission, sent a letter to the trust saying the matter had been taken up with the Indian Consulate in Dubai. Venu Rajamony, Indian Consul General, when contacted by Gulf News could not recall the receipt of the letter from Islamabad.

"I cannot recall the letter, but ask her [Dashika] to contact us and we will offer whatever possible help," he said.

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