SASARAM: A wedding proposal turned into a nightmare in Kaimur district when three men from Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras district — Banti Sharma, Pappu Kushwaha and Narendra Gupta — were kidnapped by a gang of criminals, including the woman they came to meet.
Held hostage in the dense Babhani forest under Bhagwanpur police station, the trio’s fate hung in the balance. But, in a daring five-hour rescue operation on Sunday night, Kaimur police swooped in and brought the victims to safety.
The criminals had asked for a ransom of Rs 10 lakh, threatening to kill the captives and even sell their kidneys if the money was not paid.
“Acting on a tip-off about the hostages’ location, we surrounded the Babhani forest and set up a 2km perimeter to trap the kidnappers. When the kidnappers saw us, they fled, leaving the hostages behind.” SP Harimohan Shukla said.
“Those involved in the operation will be rewarded for their quick planning and action,” Shukla said, adding SDPO Shivshankar Kumar and police officers Mukesh Kumar and Uday Kumar led the rescue operation.
An FIR was filed following a complaint by Narendra Gupta, one of the victims. He later revealed the chilling details of their ordeal. The group had come to Varanasi on Jan 10 for a spiritual visit to the Kashi Vishwanath temple. Accompanying Gupta were his friend Manish Vajpayee, his mother Shashi Devi, Pappu Kushwaha and driver Banti Sharma. The meeting had been arranged by one J D from Kudra, Kaimur, who introduced them to Maya, a woman who would supposedly meet Manish for a marriage proposal. They had even video-called Maya before the trip.
After spending the night in Bhabhua on Jan 11, Maya convinced Banti and Pappu to accompany her to an undisclosed location. But once they arrived, they were ambushed by a gang of seven to eight criminals, including Maya. The men were brutally assaulted, stripped of Rs 10,000 and their cellphones and locked inside a house deep in the forest.
Gupta revealed the identities of the kidnappers — Vikas, Rajesh, Harish, Manish and Pinky — and disclosed how they had threatened the victims with death if the ransom was not paid. Using mobile surveillance and an informant’s tip-off, the police tracked the criminals’ movements and their use of two motorcycles.
“The criminals have been identified and we are doing everything to bring them to justice,” said SP Shukla. “The rescue operation in the Babhani forest was a success and we will make sure the law catches up with them,” he added.
