Engineer (26) missing from Mumbai rig, kin suspect foul play

MUMBAI: An electrical engineer employed on contract on ONGC's offshore installation at Bombay High has been reported missing after he allegedly jumped overboard Friday.
Enos Varghese (26), a resident of Kerala, had spoken to his parents hours earlier and told them he would be relieved and reach Mumbai by evening. He was to board a train to Vadodara to resume work at his parent company.
His family and friends alleged foul play on hearing the news of his disappearance after 7pm Friday. His friends shared a WhatsApp chat between 5pm and 7pm in which Enos had said "my life is in danger".
Cops to head to rig to probe disappearance of engineer
A team from Yellow Gate police station in south Mumbai will head to Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC)’s offshore installation at Bombay High to probe the disappearance of an electrical engineer. Yellow Gate police had on Saturday registered a case of a missing person based on ONGC’s complaint that Enos Varghese, a resident of Adoor from Pathanamthitta district of Kerala, jumped overboard Friday. “A team will be dispatched for recording statements of all those present on the rig. We have sought CCTV grabs on the platform to probe if there’s any foul play. Enos was working on the rig since February 12 and was to be relieved on Friday. The body is yet to be located. The search operation is on,” said senior inspector Sarla Vasave. His family and friends have alleged foul play. A friend Ajith S who works for Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), said, “He said he would reveal everything once he boards the train to Vadodara on Friday night.” Enos, a B Tech professional, had earlier worked with KSEB.
He joined System Protection last year in June. ONGC has outsourced contracts to his company and deployed its staff on different platforms. “Enos called his mother Sibi daily. On Friday, he spoke with her around noon. He was normal. But through his friends, we learned that he exchanged chats in which he mentioned his life was in danger due to someone present onboard. There were continuous missed calls on my younger son (Ebin)’s mobile…we were in shock when we were informed at midnight that our son undressed on the rig and jumped into the sea and that his body was untraceable,” his father Reji Varghese, a retired armyman, told TOI. Reji and his relatives have arrived in Mumbai.
“There is no clear information on what happened. There is some foul play…he does not have affairs and was not the kind of person to commit suicide. He used to share everything with us,” said Reji. An ONGC spokesperson said it had immediately mobilized search and rescue operations using vessels and choppers. Rescue operations were on under the command of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre along with ONGC, Indian Navy, and Coast Guard. “Oil and Natural Gas Commission is deeply aggrieved by the incident and has instituted an internal inquiry. ONGC is closely monitoring the situation and is in constant touch with the family of Mr Enos Varghese. It is extending all possible cooperation to the family,” said the spokesperson.