Expatriate businessman V.P. Muhammed Ali, Managing Director of Jeddah National Hospital and the Rayan Medical Group, was abducted by a group of unidentified men when he was on his way to Kochi Nedumbassery Airport to return to Jeddah.

The incident happened around 6.30 in the evening even as the NRI businessman was allegedly threatened at gunpoint to get off his car on the Malappuram–Palakkad district border. He was then pushed by the accused into another car that sped away.

He was taken to an abandoned house in Palakkad district. The abductors kept him captive there. But Ali managed to escape when the accused were asleep in the early hours of the day. He ran to a nearby mosque, asking for help. On seeing a wounded Ali, the local residents rushed him to a hospital.

Nobody has been arrested yet in connection with the case. Ali is still undergoing treatment.

While the motive for the abduction isn’t clear, investigations reveal that Ali was involved in a legal property case concerning a college in the Nilgiris, and that the abductors could be connected to the dispute.

Ali, who is wellknown in the social and business circles of Jeddah, runs business ventures in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, besides Kerala. Originally from Poongode in Kalikavu, Malappuram, he has been in Jeddah for over 50 years. Malayis in Jeddah view him as the voice of the expatriate community. – editor@nrifocus.com