Another honeymoon tragedy: Newly married UP couple missing in Sikkim

Teesta river

Thirteen days after a tourist vehicle carrying a newlywed couple from Uttar Pradesh’s Pratapgarh plunged into the swollen Teesta River in Sikkim, authorities have found no trace of them or six other missing passengers, TOI reported.

The couple had embarked on their honeymoon on May 24, days after tying the knot. They were among 11 people – 10 tourists and a driver – in a mini-bus returning from Chungthang to Gangtok when it lost control amid heavy rainfall on the night of May 29 and fell into the river. So far, a total of nine people, including the couple and their driver, are still untraceable, the officials said.

The couple’s families, devastated by the uncertainty, rushed to Sikkim but returned empty-handed on Tuesday after days of futile searching. Sher Bahadur, Kaushalendra’s father, along with relatives, scoured the accident site and even met the two survivors, who confirmed the couple was in the vehicle. Sher Bahadur told Pratapgarh police officials that the two surviving tourists identified the couple by looking at their photos as they were travelling in the vehicle, as reported by TOI.

Dinesh Singh, Kaushalendra’s uncle, was quoted by NewsX as saying: “While some belongings were recovered from the hotel, there is still no clear evidence to confirm if they drowned in the river. The family is shattered but still hoping for a miracle.”

The search, led by the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), has been severely hampered by the rugged terrain and fast-flowing river.

Talking to TOI, Pratapgarh SP Dr Anil Kumar said, "Even as the flow of the river has now become normal, it is not easy to search among the debris. No belongings related to the Pratapgarh-based couple have been found so far.”

Teams are reportedly still combing the area up to Chungthang, about 8 km downstream from the accident site.

As per TOI, Kaushalendra is his parents’ only child and was preparing for the civil services exam in Delhi. Ankita worked in the medicine department at Lucknow’s Medanta Hospital. Their honeymoon was a last-minute plan after their waitlisted train tickets were confirmed on May 22.

The couple’s families, along with those of the other missing tourists - two from Uttar Pradesh, two from Tripura and four from Odisha along with the local driver - now wait in agonising hope.