In the first case, five men were arrested on charges of abducting a 27-year-old man and demanding ₹ 50,000 from his family for his release. Two separate cases involving men posing as police personnel have led to eight arrests in Ludhiana district. In the second incident, three men were nabbed in Dehlon for allegedly consuming drugs.
Police received information about the incident and launched an immediate operation, following which all five suspects were arrested. She alleged that Dheeraj was assaulted after being abducted. The vehicles allegedly used in the incident were also seized. They were caught and thrashed by Nihangs before being handed over to police. A purported video of the incident has surfaced on social media. HT is yet to verify the veracity of the video.
In the first case, according to a complaint lodged by Dheeraj Sahni’s mother, Lalita, the five suspects arrived in a Mahindra Bolero and a Maruti Suzuki Swift, introduced themselves as police personnel and forcibly took her 27-year-old son from his house near Bihari Colony on Tajpur Road on Wednesday. The suspects later contacted the family, claiming that Dheeraj was caught carrying drugs and demanded ₹ 50,000 for his release. Following repeated requests from the family, they agreed to settle the matter for ₹ 30,000.
Police said two of the accused were wearing black T-shirts bearing the Punjab Police logo along with khaki trousers, allegedly giving the appearance that they were police personnel. Dehlon SHO inspector Vijay Kumar said none of the three was a police personnel. “The accused have been booked under Sections 27, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act and a court remanded them in police custody for two days,” he added.
In a separate incident, three men were allegedly found consuming drugs at a vacant plot in Gopalpur village, Dehlon, on Wednesday.
A case has been registered under Sections 140(3), 308(2), 191(3) and 190 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Investigating officer Randhir Singh said the accused were produced before a court, which remanded them in police custody for three days. Preliminary investigation indicated that the accused had a previous dispute with the complainant, police said.
