E-Paper
Commissioner issues directives: Cops asked to keep vagabond communities under close watch
Police outpost in-charges have been asked to take help of digital volunteers about suspects living in clusters of temporary settlements on the outskirts of the city or at vacant grounds and spaces within city limits
Prayagraj police commissioner Ramit Sharma has issued instructions to all police stations to conduct background verifications of vagabond communities living in different areas under their respective areas in Prayagraj. The action follows the Hetapatti loot and murder incident.
Police outpost in-charges have been asked to take help of digital volunteers and responsible residents of their areas to get information about suspects living in clusters of temporary settlements on the outskirts of the city or at vacant grounds and spaces within city limits.
Members of the vagabond Baddik Marwadi community based in Shahjahanpur committed murder and loot in Tharwai area of trans-Ganga on August 5 and gang raped the security guard’s granddaughter. Police arrested nine members of the gang, including five women, in connection with the case.
Some other members of the Baddik Marwadi community were arrested in Shankargarh area in a separate operation. Investigations revealed that the different groups of the community were residing in different areas of the district and committing loot, theft and other crimes.
Besides, the police has busted gangs of other vagabond communities who were involved in similar incidents.
Last year, police busted the Kharwar gang and arrested over a dozen members, including women. The Kharwar gang was found to be involved in two incidents of mass murder, loot and gang rape in the trans-Ganga area. The Kharwar gang has similar modus operandi and they used to live in settlements beside railway tracks, deserted spots and under culverts and flyovers.
Three years back, police arrested members of ‘Chhemar gang’ (six murder gang) who were based in Western Uttar Pradesh. The gang was involved in incidents of mass murder and loot in trans-Ganga areas. The gang members were also living in small groups and used to carry out reconnaissance on the pretext of selling goods.
Moreover, gangs based in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, states of Southern India and Rajasthan have been found involved in incidents of fraud, theft, snatching, looting etc during the past few years.
Police have been asked to check their documents and carry out the background verification of community members to check if they have past criminal records.
