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Ludhiana firecracker trader robbed of ₹4 lakh on Diwali
Masked miscreants rob firecracker trader of ₹4 lakh near Chand Cinema during Diwali celebrations. Victim's licensed revolver couldn't be used. Investigation underway.
A group of at least six masked miscreants robbed a firecracker trader of ₹4 lakh near Chand Cinema during the wee hours of Sunday as the city celebrated Diwali.
The victim Ashok Thapar, 68, who is also the president of Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Memorial trust and from the family of Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar, said the accused managed to escape as he reached for his licensed revolver.
On being informed, the Daresi police reached the spot and initiated an investigation. A first information report (FIR) has been registered against six unidentified accused.
Thapar, a resident of Mohalla Naughara, Chaura Bazar, said he had set up a shop at the Grain Market near Jalandhar Bypass. On Sunday, at around 3.20 am he was returning home with a relative on their scooter. When he reached near Chand Cinema, six miscreants turned up at the spot on two bikes and intercepted their way. The accused brandished a sharp weapon at him and snatched a bag containing ₹4 lakh, a mobile and his wallet.
Thapar said he has a licensed revolver, but when he reached for it, he was blinded by the lights from an incoming truck. The accused fled from the spot. He borrowed a mobile phone from a commuter and informed the police about the incident.
Assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Nirmal Singh, who is investigating the case, said a case under sections 379-B (snatching using force) and 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered against unidentified accused at the Daresi police station.
Police teams are scanning the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed in the area to identify the miscreants.
Notablu, at least 2,500 police personnel were deputed in the city to maintain law-and-order situation in the city during the Diwali festivities.
