Mystery shrouds the death of suspected Malayali youth in Kashmir

Thiruvananthapuram: A youth found dead in forest areas of Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir is suspected to be a native of Palakkad in Kerala.

The family of Muhammed Shanib, 27, hailing from Mannarkad in Palakkad received the information from the Gulmarg police suspecting that the body is that of Shanib. The body was around ten days old.

Shanib's family told the local police that he left his home on April 13 stating that he got a job in Bengaluru. He was also said to have visited his sister in Bengaluru. But the family had no information regarding him over the last three weeks. He did not attend phone calls. He was also said to be having some intellectual challenges.

Palakkad district police chief Ajit Kumar told DH that it was almost confirmed that the body found in Kashmir was that of Shanib. His family members are going to Kashmir to confirm it. As of now there is no suspicious information regarding the youth, he said.

Local MLA K Santhakumari, who spoke to the police officials in Gulmarg, said that the police suspect that the youth was killed in attack by wild animals. It is still unknown how the youth reached there, she said.

Though there were reports that Shanib had worked in some Gulf countries for some time, the police did not confirm it. Shanib's father Abdul Samad was an NRI.