Cafe Coffee Day founder V G Siddhartha's body found in Netravati river

A file photo of Cafe Coffee Day(CCD) owner VG Siddhartha, his body was found 2 days after he went missing from a bridge over Netravati river. Photo: AFP

The body of the founder of Cafe Coffee Day, V G Siddharth who had been missing was found on Wednesday in the Netravati river after 36 hours of intense search. The news was confirmed by Mangalore MLA U T Khader who said that friends and relatives confirmed that the body is indeed of Siddhartha.

The police had found a body in Netravati river in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka on Wednesday and they suspected that it is the Cafe Coffee Day founder V G Siddhartha.

Also Read: CCD founder VG Siddhartha was last seen on Netravati Bridge before going missing, says police

The fishermen had fished out the body which had washed ashore near Ullal. The police reached the spot immediately on getting the news. Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district, Sasikanth Senthil, told PTI, "A body has been found, which appears to be him. Final confirmation has to be done by the family."

Mangalore Commissioner of Police Sandeep Patil said that Siddhartha's family has been informed and the body has been kept at Wenlock Hospital for further formalities.

On another note, a fisherman named Symond D'souza claimed that he saw a man jumping off the bridge into the river when he was fishing.

D'souza told IANS, "When I heard a thud-like sound in the river, I turned and saw the same man in the water struggling to float but drowned by the time I could reach the spot. As the current was strong, I could not find him in the fast-moving water, as the river is almost full and deep."

Also read: CCD founder VG Siddhartha goes missing in Mangaluru, Twitterati reacts

Siddhartha's driver Basavaraj Patil told the police that Siddhartha asked him to stop the car as they were driving through the bridge and asked him to wait as he had to make a few calls.

Patil, in his complaint, said, "When the rain started, I took a u-turn and drove back to the spot where I left Sir and searched around for him. As it was dark, windy and raining, I could not find him anywhere on the bridge or in the river." A letter which had surfaced on the internet on Tuesday said that he even though he put in the best of his efforts, he could not create a profitable business model.

Also read: Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha is India's coffee baron

(with inputs from PTI and IANS)

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Edited by mid-day online desk with inputs from Agencies