Daijiworld News Network - Bantwal (MB)

• Muslim boatmen's risk-taking gesture helps to save Hindu girls
• Daring act widely appreciated in communally-sensitive Bantwal

Bantwal, Jul 2: In a shocking incident, Ravichandra Rai (40) jumped with his two little daughters off the Panemangalore bridge near here around 3 pm on Saturday. While the two girls Shubhashri (12) and Jayashri (10) were saved by local divers and boatmen immediately, Rai is said to be missing.

The Netravati river is soaring because of the incessant rains. Yet the local boatmen and divers M K Haider (Boat-owner), Hasanabba and Ashraf, assisted by Siddiq, Rafiq and Sattar, immediately jumped into water and rescued the two girls. Every attempt was made to pull Rai out but it was in vain, said locals.

Ravichandra Rai, said to be an employee of Satya Sai Loka Seva Trust, Alike in the taluk, was mentally disturbed for some time, said sources. After half-day school on Saturday, he is said to have brought the two daughters to B C Road without their mother Suhasini's knowledge. Sjnce she was not informed, the police are of the opinion that he had left home with the clear intent of ending his life with the two little children.

Before jumping off the bridge into the river below, he is said to have first thrown the elder daughter down, protesting against which the younger daughter is said to have bit his arm. But the next instant he reportedly pulled the younger one along and jumped off the bridge. Spotting this, Haider and his associates swung into action to rescue them, but they could save only the girls.

While Bantwal and surrounding places are known for regular communal skirmishes, this daring act by the Muslim men to save the Hindu girls, taking great risk of life in the floods, has been widely appreciated by the citizens here. Peace-loving people here expect this episode to serve as a healing element amidst communal strife.