We want him back home safely: Kin of Indian researcher detained in US

The family of Badar Khan Suri, an Indian postdoctoral researcher at Georgetown University who was detained on Monday night by US department of homeland security (DHS) reportedly for supporting the Palestinian cause, living in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur have dismissed the allegations levelled against him as "baseless" and have appealed to the Indian government for intervention.

- Deepak Lavania

MEERUT:

Suri, accused by the US government of working for Hamas and spreading anti-Jewish rhetoric, was arrested outside his home in Rosslyn, Virginia. Suri is the eldest son of Shamshad Khan, a former ward member from Mohalla Banjaran in Saharanpur's Nakur town.

"I am deeply troubled by his arrest, but I know he is not involved in any wrongdoing," Khan said. "He respects all religions and has never engaged in any form of religious propaganda." he claimed while recalling how his son's academic journey took him to the United States two and a half years ago.

However, he speculated that the allegations might stem from Suri's marriage to Mapheze Saleh, an American citizen born in Gaza and the niece of a prominent Hamas leader.