The emergence of a video in which Salesian Fr Tom Uzhunnalil, kidnapped by ISIS in Yemen in March, is seen appealing for his release has led to widespread calls for diplomatic efforts to end his captivity.
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, India's minister of state for parliamentary affairs, reiterated to Cardinal George Alencherry of Ernakulam-Angamaly, major archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, that the government is "doing everything possible" during a meeting at Church headquarters in Cochin.
The minister's visit came a day after a five-minute video of a visibly weak Fr Uzhunnalil making an emotional appeal for his release. The Salesian hails from India's Kerala state.
