A young soldier from the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry appears to have defied death, returning home late on Friday night a few hours after being “abducted” by militants in front of his family in central Kashmir’s Budgam district.

Rifleman Mohammad Yaseen Bhat’s family had informed police on Friday night that militants had barged into their home around 8.30pm and kidnapped the 21-year-old soldier, who was on leave.

Security forces rushed to the village to hunt for the militants and their “hostage”. They found the family crying and wailing. But unexpectedly, the smiles were back shortly afterwards.

“Around midnight — or perhaps one o’clock in the night — after all of them (the security forces) had left, he (Bhat) returned home. Our joy knew no bounds,” Manzoor Ahmad, Bhat’s uncle, told The Telegraph.

Manzoor said two to three armed men had barged into the family’s home and asked for his nephew. The family resisted their attempt to abduct him, which led to a melee.

Bhat later told the family that he had escaped by jumping out through the kitchen window while the militants were still in the house. But since he disappeared for hours, everyone thought he had been abducted.

The young man is lucky to survive. Several policemen and soldiers have been kidnapped and killed in Kashmir while visiting home on leave, causing the thousands of police and soldier families across the Valley to live in fear.

“We thought that was the case (that Bhat had been kidnapped) but (later we found that) it was not so. Around 4am, he left for his camp at Rangreth (so that he remains safe there),” Manzoor said, his voice betraying his fear.

“They (the would-be kidnappers) were armed but we don’t know which organisation they were from.”

Rangreth, on Srinagar’s fringes, houses the regimental centre of the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry. Manzoor said he lives in Qazipora, which is some distance from Chak Mohalla, where Bhat’s family resides.

“The incident happened at 8.30pm. They (Bhat’s family) called us soon and we came around 9.30pm (and stayed there for the night),” he said.

The defence ministry on Saturday said the news of the “abduction” was “incorrect” but gave no details.

“Clarification. Media reports of the abduction of a serving army soldier on leave from Qazipora, Chadoora, Budgam, are incorrect. Individual is safe. Speculations may please be avoided,” the ministry spokesperson tweeted in the morning.

A senior police officer had on Friday night “confirmed” the abduction, based on information provided by the family.