Mumbai: Kin fear missing shippie ensnared by human traffickers

The mother of 22yearold Indian seafarer Manikandan Udiyarmdashwho has been missing in Malaysia since October 2022mdashlanded in Kuala Lumpur last month met the Royal Malaysia Police and registered a murder case against the Chinese owner of a tugboat where the youth was deployed to workThe youthrsquos parents and activists suspect humantrafficking kingpins are behind the abrupt disappearance of Udiyar as the tugboat owner had filed a missing personrsquos complaint ldquoBut when I met the Chinese owner Hi Hoon Mee he did not give us my sonrsquos passport and continuous discharge certificatecumseafarerrsquos identity documentrdquo Bharathi the mother told middayUdiyar who had lost his job during the pandemic was referred to a Kolhapurbased agent Rehan Pathan who charged him Rs 2 lakh to secure the job in Malaysia He left India for Kuala Lumpur in September as the gig would help him assist his povertystricken parents financiallyBharathi and Poongavanam UdiyarThe youthrsquos father Poongavanam works as a cook in a Mulundbased restaurant while Bharathi is a domestic help in the eastern suburb where they reside ldquoWe worked hard to give our children a good education He completed a maritime course from a Punebased academy in 2020 and had been working in Dubai But during the pandemic my son lost his job and returned to Indiardquo said PoongavanamBharathi said ldquoHe was elated after he got the offer to work in Malaysia but after reaching there he was asked to work on a tugboat named Zim Yin He was overqualified for that kind of workrdquoUdiyar last contacted his sister Divya on October 17 2022 at 830 pm ldquoThe agent had procured a Malaysian mobile number for my son But Manikandan has been untraceable since October 17 Divya was expecting a call on her birthday October 22rdquo Bharathi saidA copy of the case registered against Hi Hoon Mee right Manikandan UdiyarThe Udiyar family got alarmed after they received no calls on Divyarsquos birthday The family also contacted Pathan the agent whom Udiyar had consulted ldquoInitially Pathan told us that the boat where my son worked had capsized in the Rejang river and the rescue operations were underway But he changed his statement later saying that my son had gone absconding in Malaysia When I spoke with him sternly he told me lsquoDo whatever you want you canrsquot do anything to mersquordquo Bharathi told middayAfter running from pillar to post the family managed to register a cheating case against Pathan who has gone undergroundActivist helps familyThe family came in contact with a seafareractivist Captain Sanjay Prashar ldquoHe Capt Prashar helped us a lot and deputed a good Samaritan to take me to Malaysia last monthrdquo Bharathi said ldquoAfter much persuasion the Chinese owner returned the belongings of my son When I opened the bag my sonrsquos CDC and passport were missingrdquoldquoThe Chinese owner told us that my son drowned in a river while on duty and they have registered a missing complaint at a police station in Kapit town in Malaysia But if that was the case why were his passport and CDC not returned to merdquo wondered the motherldquoI strongly believe that the Chinese owner has trafficked my son making him work under inhuman conditions somewhere I request the DG Shipping and government to help me find my son who has fallen prey to an internationally run human trafficking racketrdquo Bharathi addedThe businessman Sachin Shetty who accompanied Bharathi to Kapit to register a murder case against Hi Hoon Mee at a police station said that the Chinese owner was not cooperating with the local authoritiesAccording to Shetty Udiyar is the seventh Indian seafarer who has gone missing under mysterious circumstances in Malaysia recently He said ldquoUdiyar went missing on October 17 but Hi Hoon Mee registered a missing complaint on October 28 What was the reason for this delayrdquoldquoIf it was a case of drowning the body starts to float after three days but it sinks again after four days if not fished out And as per international rules the ship owner has to bear the compensation if a seafarer dies on duty So if Udiyar drowned the Chinese owner might have noticed the body after three days but did not fish it out to avoid paying compensation After noticing the body Hi Hoon Mee might have waited for another four days for it to sink And when the body sunk again the Chinese owner registered a missing complaintrdquo Bharathi hypothesisedldquoThe second possibility is the human trafficking angle as Udiyarrsquos passport and CDC were not returned to us If he drowned how are his passport and CDC not traceable Was my son working with these documents in his pocket It seems that my son has been trafficked by a wellorganised network and the Chinese owner has to play a big role in thisrdquo Bharathi addedMeanwhile Captain Prashar said ldquoBudding Indian seafarers are being cheated fatally Avoid dying by not going on ships in Malaysia and IranrdquoAttempt to hush upBharathi said ldquoThe ship owner filed a false complaint and reported my son as a run away from onshore Its manipulate the actual fact and hide out the truth to cheat us sicrdquoBharathi further alleged that the Chinese owner offered her a huge sum of money not to pursue the matter ldquoBut I categorically told them that I want my son back not moneyrdquo she saidOct 17Day in 2022 when Udiyar last contacted kin