Shares of Cafe Coffee Day Enterprises Drop 20% After Founder VG Siddhartha Goes Missing

The shares plunged within hours of the news of the disappearance of Siddhartha, who is also the son-in-law of former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna.

Bengaluru: Shares of Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd plunged 20% in early trading on Tuesday after the founder and largest shareholder in the company, VG Siddhartha, went missing under mysterious circumstances on Monday evening.

The shares plunged within hours of the news of the disappearance of Siddhartha, who is also the son-in-law of former Karnataka chief minister SM Krishna.

The businessman was last seen near the Ullal bridge over the Netravati river and was reported missing from Mangalore. The 55-year-old reportedly asked his driver to take him near the bridge, from where he got down and said he was going for a walk. The driver reportedly waited till about 8 PM but Siddhartha never returned.

Over 200 policemen and divers were reportedly searching for Siddhartha at the bridge. Sniffer dogs have also been deployed at the site.

Siddhartha had been in the news after he sold about 20% of his stake in tech company Mindtree Ltd to engineering and construction company Larsen & Toubro Ltd.  He was also in talks with Coca-Cola Co. to sell his flagship chain to the snack food and cola giant.