Family hopeful of Judith D'Souza's release from Afghan abductors

Kolkata: Still clueless about her whereabouts, the family of Indian aid worker Judith D’Souza, who was kidnapped in Kabul on 9 June, on Tuesday said they are hopeful of India securing her release. [caption id=“attachment_2832492” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File photo of Judith D’Souza. PTI[/caption] “So far there is no news of her whereabouts. But we are happy with the efforts of the Indian government in trying to trace and secure her release. The Ministry of External Affairs has been constantly in touch with us,” Judith’s brother Jerome told IANS. Judith, 40, working with Aga Khan Development Network, an NGO, was kidnapped while she was returning home after a dinner at a friend’s place in the Qala-e-Fatullah area of Kabul. Hailing from Kolkata, Judith had been working with the NGO in Kabul as a senior technical adviser since July 2015. “Both the Indian and Afghan governments are endeavouring to secure her release and we are very hopeful of getting her back,” he added. While External Affairs Minister Suhsma Swaraj had called up the family assuring all steps to secure Judith release, the Kolkata-based D’Souzas in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed for her release. Besides sympathisers and well-wishers appealing to the governments of both countries on social media networking pages for Judith’s swift and safe release, political parties including the Congress have urged the Modi government to put pressure on Afghanistan over the issue.