Ahmedabad: Mitesh Patel, Member of Parliament from Gujarat’s Anand, issued a video statement on Tuesday revealing that a couple from Gujarat was abducted and held captive in Azerbaijan before being rescued with assistance from the Ministry of External Affairs. The couple had been traveling to the United States when kidnappers seized them and demanded ransom for their release.
Acknowledging the prompt action by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Mitesh stated that the couple was freed and is now safe. The statement was shared on the minister’s X account.
The victims, identified as Dhruv Patel and his wife Dipika Patel, were en route to the US when they fell into the hands of agents who had assured them illegal safe passage to America. The abductors issued threats to kill the couple unless the ransom demand was met.
यशस्वी प्रधानमंत्री आदरणीय श्री @narendramodi जी और मान विदेश मंत्री श्री @DrSJaishankar जी और गुजरात सरकार की और भारतीय दूतावास बाकू की तत्परता से, आनंद जिले के दोनों नागरिको को मात्र 24 घंटे में सुरक्षित बचा लिया गया।
में आप सभी के अपील करता हूं की "एजेंटों के झांसे में आकर… pic.twitter.com/1d2pAc99e6— Mitesh Patel (Bakabhai) (@Miteshbhaibjp) February 10, 2026
The BJP MP explained that the parents of Dhruv and Dipika approached him after learning of the kidnapping in Azerbaijan. According to the family, “they received a video call in which people (kidnappers) from Azerbaijan demanded ransom for their release,” Mitesh said in the video.
In response, the MP met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who was in Delhi for the ongoing Parliament session on Monday.
The MEA reached out to the Indian Embassy in Azerbaijan, and within 24 hours, both kidnapped individuals were rescued and brought to the Embassy in Baku, the capital of the country in the South Caucasus region, the minister informed.
In his video message, the Anand MP urged Gujarat’s youth to avoid approaching such agents for going abroad and instead seek opportunities domestically. “You will get the best opportunities here (in Gujarat),” the Lok Sabha MP reportedly said.
He expressed gratitude to the MEA and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the government’s efforts in rescuing the couple, stating that the government worked very hard to bring them back alive.
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The Ministry of External Affairs frequently warns citizens about agents who offer entry through illegal channels or entice people with fraudulent job promises. Last year, after reports emerged of Indian citizens being kidnapped in Iran, the ministry issued an advisory urging strict vigilance regarding job offers. In July last year, three Indians employed at a factory in Mali were abducted.