Karachi: Senior management members of the Pakistani local beverage brand Cola Next disappeared from Lahore shortly after the company’s CEO, Zulfiqar Ahmed, was kidnapped.
Cola Next, which has marketed itself as an alternative to Coca-Cola since October amid calls to boycott products allegedly supporting Israel’s actions in Gaza, saw its CEO abducted on July 23. The incident occurred after Ahmed left his office in Lahore.
According to Daily Pakistan, the company’s Deputy Manager of Finance, Hassan Nawaz, and General Manager, Daniyal Khan, were also kidnapped. Nawaz was taken from Lahore, while Khan was abducted by armed men in white double-cabin vehicles in Kasur. The company’s lawyer informed the media about the abduction of these senior employees from Punjab.
In another incident, police in Sindh have registered a kidnapping case after a prominent businessman was abducted by armed men in Karachi four days ago. Ahmed, who also serves as the managing director of Paracha Textile Mills and Mezan Group, went missing when eight armed men intercepted his white Toyota Surf. The kidnappers released Ahmed’s friend, who was with him at the time.
Ahmed’s friend shared details of the incident, prompting the businessman’s family and company management to file a report at the Kalri police station on the same day. Initially, the police refused to register the complaint, leading the family to the Sindh High Court, which ordered the police to file the case on Friday. Karachi Police Chief Javed Alam Odho stated that two “high-powered” teams are investigating the case.
