Indian diamond businessman kidnapped in Mali, released after family paid 4 million euros ransom

Surat, an Indian-origin diamond merchant who was allegedly kidnapped in Mali in April, was released after his family paid a ransom of up to 4 million euros, sources said.

The kidnappers initially demanded $They said 75-year-old diamond businessman Dhiru Ramani was worth Rs 100 crore but his family living in the US negotiated a lower amount before securing his release.

A source in Surat familiar with developments said on Sunday that the family paid a ransom of 4 million euros last week to secure his release in the West African country. Ramani, who hails from Gujarat’s Amreli district and is associated with the diamond trade in Surat, remains in Mali after his release and is being interrogated by local authorities, sources told PTI on condition of anonymity. The businessman was allegedly kidnapped three months ago in Mali, where he recently acquired a gold mine and lived there for some time. “He has been released but is still in Mali. Local police are questioning him about his release and the circumstances surrounding it,” the source said. According to sources, Ramani’s family in the United States handled the negotiations themselves and no Indian government agency was involved in the process. He hails from Dal village in Amreli district and has been in the diamond business since around 1980. Later he moved to the United States, where his family was engaged in the international diamond trade. Around the time of the alleged kidnapping in April, the Indian embassy in Mali’s capital Bamako issued a general security advisory urging Indian nationals living there to exercise caution. “Due to recent security developments and attacks in Kati and other parts of Mali, the Indian Embassy in Bamako urges all Indian nationals residing in Mali to remain highly vigilant, exercise extreme caution, stay indoors and strictly adhere to instructions issued by the Malian authorities from time to time,” the advisory on April 25 said. However, the advisory did not mention any specific incident or individual.

This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.