'Never lost hope': Tattoo helps Ahmedabad police find kin of deaf and mute man; reunited after 15 years

AHMEDABAD: A tattoo on a deaf and mute man yielded Navrangpura police a clinching visual clue to trace his family to UP and help him reunite with his kin after a 15-year separation.Pankaj Yadav, the man separated from his family, had been cared for by Navrangpura police for the past eight years.

Even hardened cops were, therefore, moved by the poignancy of the moment when the "Ram Sita" tattoo was recognised at a tea stall and the cops realised that their association with Pankaj was about to end.

Neeraj Yadav, who works as a security guard in the area, spotted the tattoo at the stall and connected it to a boy who had gone missing 15 years ago from the village of Shanel in Banda district of UP.

"I knew immediately that this was the same boy who had gone missing all those years ago," Neeraj said.

Police worked diligently to confirm Pankaj's identity and locate his family. They reached out to his elder brother, Natthu, who was overwhelmed upon hearing the news. "I never lost hope," Natthu said tearfully to police. "The tattoo was a sign from God, and I am grateful to police for their relentless efforts." K A Gadhavi, the Navrangpura police inspector, said, "Pankaj had been staying at the Navrangpura police station for the past eight years.

Anyone who has come to the station would have seen him." "Realising that he had found a place to stay, he used to sleep on a bench, and the staff used to give him food and tea," Gadhavi said. "On Diwali, he was always given a new pair of clothes. For his part, Pankaj used to clean the police station," he added.