Manhunt on for national hero abducted in Maharashtra

Nilesh Bhil, 12, received the National Bravery Award in January 2016 for saving a village boy from drowning in a water tank the previous year.

Jalgaon: Police have launched a manhunt for a national bravery hero from Maharashtra -- honoured by Prime Minister Narendra Modi -- who has been kidnapped along with his sibling from their home here, police said on Saturday.

Investigating Officer Vandana Sonawane said a special team had been set up. All police stations in the city and surrounding areas had been told to keep a lookout for the two boys.

"We have published appeals to the public in the media, put up posters with photos of both the boys at public places, markets, bus and railway stations and our policemen are fanning out to track them," Sonawane told IANS.

The police went into a tizzy after the boys' parents, Revaram Bhil and Sundarbai, reached the police station on Friday night.

According to their mother Sundarbai R. Bhil, their two minor sons, Nilesh and Ganpat, have been missing since Tuesday and Thursday respectively and may have been kidnapped by unknown persons, Sonawane said.

On Tuesday, the parents, both working as labourers, had reached home from work and their three sons were playing at home.

They realized something was amiss when till Wednesday afternoon, the eldest son and national hero Nilesh went missing. They launched a search for him.

"The parents enquired with all their relatives, friends and Nilesh's friends but got no clues. The following day, after they returned home from a full day of hunt for Nilesh, they learnt even seven-year-old Ganpat had gone missing," Sonawane said.

After exhausting all avenues, the worried parents approached the police for help on Friday.

Nilesh, 12, received the National Bravery Award in January 2016 for saving a village boy from drowning in a water tank.

The motive behind the suspected double kidnapping is not clear.