Man with schizophrenia mistaken for drone thief & thrashed, spends 20 days in hospital

BAREILLY: A 26-year-old man, battling schizophrenia since childhood, inadvertently stepped out of his village in Bijnor district on July 26. Looking lost and dishevelled, he wandered aimlessly for the next nine days in the district only to be mistaken as a "drone thief" by a local vigilante group. Rumours about drones being used for theft surveillance in villages of Uttar Pradesh have sparked fear among residents since past few weeks, resulting in several people being attacked on suspicion.Unable to comprehend and respond to the villagers' queries, Satish Kumar (name changed) was allegedly mercilessly thrashed -- he couldn't defend himself even as blows rained on him. It was only after intervention by local police that Kumar could be "rescued".Realising his health condition, police personnel kept him in their custody for three days and at the same time, informed other thanas in the area to know his background. Already disoriented and lost, Kumar was traumatised further after the brutal assault.With no one coming forward to claim the 26-year-old as their own, the cops shifted him to a mental hospital in Bareilly on the magistrate's orders on Aug 7. Director of Bareilly's mental hospital, Pushpa Tripathi, said, “Police brought him here on time which prevented his illness from getting worse. We provided free treatment to the patient and also gave him a month's medicine...”Meanwhile, Kumar’s elder sister, Payal (name changed), searched frantically for him. She filed a missing complaint at Kiratpur on July 26. She was subsequently told about a "young patient with schizophrenia" who was admitted to a Bareilly hospital. "I somehow knew that the patient would be my 'lost brother'," Payal, who works as a helper at a private hospital, told TOI.She added: "I earn Rs 4,000 per month, and it was a huge challenge for me to reach Bareilly immediately as I didn't have enough money to travel. Luckily, there was free bus service for Raksha Bandhan on Aug 8 and 9, and I reached Bareilly on Aug 9 to see my brother."At the mental hospital, psychiatrists suggested Payal leave him there for "at least 15 more days for further treatment". "His sister told us that he was very close to his mom and his mental condition deteriorated after she passed away this Feb," said Alok Shukla, a psychiatrist at the hospital.To the huge relief of his family, Kumar was finally discharged from the mental hospital on Aug 26, and reunited with them at home -- almost a month after he had mysteriously vanished.