Hatadihi: A youth was allegedly kidnapped by some miscreants after his father was severely beaten by the accused demanding a ransom when the father-son duo was returning from a local court under Nandipada police limits and Hatadihi block in Keonjhar district, today.

The abducted youth was identified as Sanatan Nayak and his father was identified as Narendra Nayak. They hail from Pandado village of this panchayat in the block.

According to a source, the father-son duo had been to JMFC court for a physical appearance during the hearing of a case. They were intercepted on their way back home on a motorcycle. The unidentified miscreants demanded a ransom of around lakhs of rupees. As Narendra expressed his inability to pay the demanded amount, the miscreants threw him into a farmland on the roadside. The accused fled from the spot along with Sanatan soon after committing the crime.

Some locals rescued Narendra and admitted him to the sub-divisional hospital (SDH) in Anandapur for treatment in critical condition.

Family of the victims subsequently lodged an FIR with Hatadihi police. Acting on which, police registered a case in this connection and launched a probe, which is underway.