E-Paper
Ludhiana: 7 get life term for abducting industrialist
The court of additional sessions judge Harbans Singh Lekhi on Monday sentenced seven men to life imprisonment for their involvement in a 2013 abduction case
The court of additional sessions judge Harbans Singh Lekhi on Monday sentenced seven men to life imprisonment for their involvement in a 2013 abduction case.
The accused had abducted industrialist Manish Kumar Barara and sought ₹5 crore as ransom for his released.
The court acquitted four accused and two others died during the trial.
Barara, the owner of an industrial unit in Doraha, and his driver were abducted near Malhipur village on July 13, 2013.
They were returning to Ludhiana in a BMW car at the time of the abduction.
The kidnappers, who were disguised as police officers and armed with illegal weapons, intercepted their car.
Barara was released after his family paid the ₹5-crore ransom.
After investigation, police identified the main accused as Gurarpan Chauhan, a businessman facing severe financial losses. Chauhan and his aide Deepali Bassi hatched the plan to kidnap Barara.
The Himachal Pradesh Police later recovered ₹4.6 crore of the ransom from co-accused Sahil Chandel’s car.
Advocate SC Gupta, who represented the victim, said Gurarpan Chauhan, Deepali Bassi, Himmat Singh, Sonu Chaurasia, Tony, Amit Kumar and Sahil Chandel were sentenced to life imprisonment.
According to the investigators, Chauhan and Bassi were the masterminds.
Two of the accused, Sarabjit Singh and Dharma, passed away during the trial, and four others – Amandeep Singh, Balaji, Parminder Singh and Gopal Krishan – were acquitted.
The convictions include sections 364A (kidnapping for ransom) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code.
Bassi was also convicted under additional sections for her role. In total, 45 witnesses were called to testify during the trial that spanned over a decade.
The court ordered that ₹2 lakh from the fines imposed on the accused be paid as compensation to the victim.
