On 26 April 2022, my 28-year-old brother, Manikanth Kondaveeti, went on a solo trip to Baku in Azerbaijan. A little over two weeks later, something unusual happened. Manikanth didn't reply to our WhatsApp messages on 12 May and since he was in a foreign country, we started feeling worried.
At first, we thought that since he was very fond of adventure and used to go on treks and hike on different terrains, he may not have mobile network and once he returns to the hotel, he would be able to touch base.
But even after 48 hours, as the messages stopped getting delivered to his phone, our worry turned into horror as we were unable to track him.
In one of our last conversations, Manikath told us that he was going for a hike in the forests of Zaqatala in Azerbaijan. He had a flight for Uzbekistan on 17 May 2022, which he did not board and one of his bags is still at the hotel in Zaqatala where he was staying.
It's been two weeks and we are not able to get any information about him.
We have reached out to the Indian ambassador to Azerbaijan in Baku and they are trying to trace him with the help of local police and the authorities in the country.
My brother, who works at an information technology firm in Mumbai, had met me last on 26 April, in Delhi when he was taking the flight to Azerbaijan.
We are very worried about him! We are aware that the foreign ministry of India is trying its best to locate him but as more and more time is passing by, our tensions about him are hitting the rooftop. I pray he comes back home safely, as soon as possible.
(The Quint has reached out to the Indian embassy in Baku, Azerbaijan, to get an update on the search operation. Their response is awaited. The story would be updated when the response is received.)
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