Twelve years on, snatching accused walks free

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 12

Almost 12 years after he was booked for snatching, a Hoshiarpur man was acquitted by a court. Baljit Singh was declared a proclaimed offender (PO) in 2010 and was arrested in 2017. In the court, the complainant failed to identify the accused and the investigation officer did not appear to record his statement.

Baljit, along with his accomplices, was accused of robbing a girl of her gold chain. While one of the other accused, Chandan Pabla, has already been declared a PO by the court, yet another accused, Gursewak Singh, is dead.

According to the defence, the evidence in the case could not be proved. As per the FIR, the Bullet motorcycle used in the crime did not have a number plate and had an “advocate” sticker. However, as per the photographs of the vehicle produced by the police in court, it had no such sticker.

The complainant in the case was a Sector 38 resident, Anupama. She had stated that she worked in Sector 34 and on September 22, 2006, she was returning home in the evening. Suddenly, three youths appeared on a motorcycle two of whom blocked her way while the third got down and snatched her chain and mobile phone.