Bengaluru man combs every Kochi street, bylane in search of missing father
KOCHI: In the rush of cars and bikes in Kochi city, a young man sat quietly on the steps of a commercial complex near Pathadipalam metro station. Suddenly, he leapt up and ran towards an elderly passerby, his eyes searching the man’s face with desperate hope, only to turn away disappointed. The 35-year-old man then returned to his spot, beside a fading poster that read ‘Missing: Suraj Lama’.
Santon Lama, son of 59-year-old Suraj—a Bengaluru resident who went missing in Kochi after being deported from Kuwait last month — has had the same routine every day: combing every shortcut, bypass and street across Ernakulam district in search of his father.
“Every time my phone rings, hope fills my heart. Yesterday night (Tuesday), I got a call from Perumbavoor about a possible sighting. I rushed there and searched till morning, but in vain,” said Santon.
Suraj worked in Kuwait for nearly 30 years, running his own restaurant. He was deported to Kochi after reportedly suffering memory loss caused by ‘methanol poisoning’. After his condition worsened, Suraj was transferred to a deportation centre and sent to India.
“Two days after his arrival, we received a photo of an air ticket from one of his friends in Kuwait, revealing that my father had been deported via Jazeera Airways on October 4 and landed in Kochi the next day,” said Santon.
He said, “I recently rented a bike to ease my search. Every morning, I fill its tank and ride through the streets, residential areas and bylanes across Ernakulam’s rural belt - from Aluva to Perumbavoor - looking for my father. By evening, I return to the city and continue looking in public places, including the shelter home premises. At night, I go from one metro pillar to another, checking the people sleeping there, hoping to find my father among them.”
‘I wish to find my father and reunite him with my mother’
After a missing persons complaint was filed, a Kochi Metro feeder bus driver claimed he saw Suraj at the Aluva metro station. There were also reports of him being spotted near a house in the Thrikkakara area. None of the leads panned out.
The police had admitted Suraj to Kalamassery Medical College Hospital on October 10, but he disappeared from there, Santon said, his voice cracking. He said his father wasn’t deported using his passport, but through some special arrangement. “How did he pass immigration? Why was he sent to Kochi instead of Bengaluru? Why didn’t the Kuwaiti officials inform us? And how could the airport authorities let an ailing elderly man leave unattended? So many questions and not a single answer. Is this the treatment a common citizen deserves?” he asked.
“I am not looking for a confrontation with the authorities. As his only son, I wish to find my father and reunite him with my mother in Bengaluru, who is living a life drained of hope,” Santon said.
The police and authorities grow weary of the prolonged search for Suraj. However, Sunny remains deeply grateful to everyone involved.
“After we filed a habeas corpus petition, the High Court directed the Kerala Police to respond and form a special investigation team, which included me. Migrant workers in Ernakulam, especially in the Perumbavoor Bengali Market, have been incredibly supportive, even setting up an inquiry booth. Moreover, Justice Devan Ramachandran of the High Court personally reached out to me after learning about the case and extended his support,” Santon said.
On the fate of his father’s restaurant at Al Salmiya in Kuwait, Suraj said he had hardly thought about it. All he is concerned with is finding his father, no matter how many days it takes.