Of vehicle theft, ransom call & loot

Sumedha Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, September 19

Black-coloured Pulsar bike of Sunny Yadav (42) was stolen from outside his house at Sohna earlier this month. As he was preparing to approach the police, he received a phone call from an anonymous number.

“Bhai apni motorcycle dhund raa hai ke. Humne thaayi hai, aur hum hi wapas kar saken hain. (Looking for your bike? We have stolen it and only we can return it),” said the caller.

“He told me that by the time I would lodge an FIR, my bike would have been sold part-by-part. I was asked to cough up Rs 10,000 to get it back. Thinking it to be a better option, I arranged money and set out for the designated spot in Nagina, Mewat,” Yadav said.

There, he was accosted by three men who had come riding his stolen bike and had their faces covered. One of them pulled out a dagger, while others snatched his purse, chain and beat him up before fleeing on his bike.

Yadav is one of the over 70 victims targeted by such “Pakkad” gangs. The trend, which was rampant in UP, has now caught up in Mewat villages falling in Haryana and Rajasthan. In fact, villages such as Chor Garhi, Kishan Garh, Lungiya Kalan, Jamal Garh, Athan Gaon and parts of Nagina have turned into dens of vehicle-lifters.

“Vehicle lifting is very risky these days. With CCTVs, guards etc., it is a tough task to get a good bike and even if you get one, selling it or its parts is even more risky. Pakkad is the best way out. We get whatever bike we can. Then we approach the bike owner, who generally agrees to pay Rs 5,000-10,000 to get back his bike,” says vehicle-lifter Ahmed (name changed) of Lungiya Kalan, who is accused in over 50 such cases and out on parole.

“We look for bikes that are in good condition. First these are used to get pakkad target. Whether we will rob him or return the vehicle depends on the circumstances in each individual case. In case we don’t return the bike, we advertise for its sale on OLX and hope to fool somebody else,” reveals his associate.

In all, 271 cases of vehicle lifting were registered in Mewat, but only 18 of them could be recovered. “We book the accused not only for vehicle lifting, but also for gang robbery as two or more persons are generally involved in such conspiracies. We urge people to approach the police in such cases rather than striking any deal with the culprits,” said Nuh SP Sangeeta Kalia.