The View from Fez has found a strange story running in the online version of a Punjabi newspaper. It has all the makings of a Bollywood mystery, but without a suitable conclusion.
JALANDHAR, JUNE 18: LOK Bhalai Party (LBP) president Balwant Singh Ramoowalia today said a large number of Punjabi boys were held captive by unscrupulous travel agents in Morocco and appealed to the Indian government to provide emergency certificates to them, so that they can be brought back.
Ramoowalia also brought five families, whose sons were held captive in Morocco, to the press conference.
Ram Kishan, sarpanch of Bulandpur, said he had sent his son to Spain through a travel agent after paying Rs 5.5 lakh, and now he has come to know that he, along with many Punjabi boys, has been made captive by travel agents, who were demanded Rs 2 lakh from each boy. Similar was the tale of Kuldip Singh of Rishi Nagar and Tarlok Singh of Ibrahimpur village.
Ramoowalia said, “Why the Punjab government, 185 members of the SGPC, Opposition leader Parkash Singh Badal, and various Sikh youth organisation, which are active here, are not taking this issue seriously? Why are they not taking the travel agents to task and creating the awareness in the state?” He claimed that to date, Rs 10,000 crore have been charged by the unscrupulous travel agents in the state on the pretext of sending youths abroad.
It is not clear to us why (or even "if") the boys have been taken. We will continue our research and bring you any news, if it surfaces.
Tags: Morocco Fes, Maghreb news
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