Mentally ill Uttar Pradesh man rejoins kin after 4 years

Rajesh Shyam (32) has been missing from his house in Mirzamurad near Varanasi, in Uttar Pradesh for more than four years and his illiterate family did not know how to search for him. They did not even lodge a police complaint, but kept their hopes alive that he would return one day. 

A few weeks ago, the family received a call from the Mirzamurad police station telling them that Rajesh Shyam has been traced to Chennai. Rajesh Shyam has a wife and two sons but they decided to send Rajesh’s uncle Ram Lal to Chennai to take him home. 

“He belongs to a very poor family and his wife is also an illiterate. Rajesh was admitted at Little Hearts, a home for mentally challenged, after Kalpakkam police took him to custody for creating nuisance,” SCRB inspector Thahira told DTNext. 

Rajesh Shyam was mentally disturbed then and was violent. He always carried a wooden log with him and assaulted those who confronted him. “He was given treatment at Little Hearts and recovered. At first, he could not recall his address. But after the treatment, he gave us his address in parts and we managed to trace it to Mirzamurad,” Inspector Thahira said. 

On Thursday, Rajesh Shyam was reunited with his relatives in the presence of Kancheepuram district collector Gajalakshmi, Dristrict Revenue Officer Xavier Ravi and Rita, a representative from Little Hearts.