A businessman who was abducted from Exhibition Road on Wednesday evening was rescued from a house in Dariyapur Koeri Tola on Thursday.

Police said four armed criminals had abducted P.S. Reminath (64), a generator set dealer, from Exhibition Road when he was about to leave his shop for his Patliputra home around 8pm on Wednesday.

The abductors used the victim's Hyundai i10 car to take him to their hideout, and had allegedly demanded Rs 50 lakh as ransom for his safe release. They later agreed to let him go for Rs 5 lakh. The police launched a hunt for the kidnappers soon after the trader's wife reported the matter to Gandhi Maidan police station after he didn't reach home late on Wednesday night.

Deputy inspector-general (central range) Shalin said the police nabbed a man called Naseer from near a petrol pump on Exhibition Road when he came to collect the ransom.

"As soon as one of the kidnappers reached the agreed spot to collect the ransom, he was nabbed," said the DIG.

Based on information gleaned from Naseer's statement, the police raided the Dariyapur Koeri Tola house and freed Ravikant.

Three suspects, including the alleged mastermind of the crime, have been detained for interrogation. The kidnappers reportedly made ransom calls to Ravikant's relatives from his mobile. Patna city superintendent of police (central) Chandan Kushwaha said the trader's car was also found at the abductor's hideout. "The criminal antecedents of Naseer and his associates are being checked. Probe is on," he added.

The suspects have claimed that Ravikant, who has roots in Kerala but settled in Patna decades ago, owed them money that he refused to return.

"The veracity of the suspects' statements will be verified," said the SP.

The abduction took place a day before chief minister Nitish Kumar reviewed the law and order situation in the state with senior police officers.