Ludhiana trader abducted, robbed of cash and mobile phone

According to the victim, Rajinderpal Singla, a resident of Urban Estate, Dugri, he received a call from an unknown number from a person posing as a trader who placed an order for 43,200 cycle handle parts

A 65-year-old cycle parts trader was kidnapped and robbed by two unidentified miscreants in Ludhiana on the pretext of making a payment against an order. The incident took place on May 23 and has since prompted an FIR by the Division Number 6 police.

The incident took place on May 23 and has since prompted an FIR by the Division Number 6 police. (HT Photo)

According to the victim, Rajinderpal Singla, a resident of Urban Estate, Dugri, he received a call from an unknown number from a person posing as a trader who placed an order for 43,200 cycle handle parts. The caller asked Singla to collect the payment near Pahwa Hospital on Gill Road.

“When I arrived at the location, the accused, who were in a Maruti Suzuki Swift, made me sit in their car. They thrashed me inside the moving car, snatched ₹3,000 and my mobile phone,” said Singla.

The ordeal worsened when the accused demanded more money. “As I wasn’t carrying more cash, they forcibly took both my and my wife’s debit cards, made me reveal the PINs, and withdrew ₹40,000 from an ATM,” Singla added.

The miscreants later dropped me near Green Land School in Dugri and fled, the victim said.

After informing the police, Singla lodged a formal complaint. He also alleged that the accused called him again later, demanding more money and issuing threats.

Assistant sub-inspector Onkar Singh, who is investigating the case, said that a case has been registered under Sections 140(2) (kidnapping or abduction), 308(1) (extortion), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), and 351(2) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). “Efforts are underway to identify and arrest the culprits,” Singh said.