Madhya Pradesh Police on Sunday said that the gangs which kidnapped and held Nicholas Piramal senior executive Ashwini Bhatt and his driver hostage have been identified.

“The Special Task Force has identified the kidnappers of Bhatt and his driver Babu Patel. The kidnappers will be arrested soon,” police said.

From an analysis of the way the kidnapping was done and the place where victims were kept, the Special Task Force has arrived at the conclusion that separate gangs were involved, they said.

Bhatt, president (Manufacturing) of the Company’s Pithampur plant who reached Indore on Sunday morning after being rescued from a “makeshift mud hut” from Natua Ka Pura ravines of Chambal area in Morena district on Saturday, was abducted by armed persons when he was returning home to Indore in a Toyota Corolla from Gwalior on January 18.

The kidnappers took control of his car and dumped it at Nihalganj in Dholpur district of Rajasthan, police said, adding that Bhatt and Patel were blindfolded and forced to walk for nearly four hours before being held hostage in the mud hut.

No retaliation

As the teams approached the kidnappers’ hideout during the rescue operation, they saw some armed men fleeing the spot, police said, claiming that a shot was also fired by the accused, but the police refrained from retaliating, fearing for the life of Bhatt and Patel, who were found tied up with ropes.

Police categorically denied that any ransom was paid for Bhatt’s release. Bhatt also supported police claims about ransom during his interaction with reporters in Indore.