Ludhiana: Nihang held by police for abducting, torturing auto driver for ransom

The local police on Thursday arrested a nihang for allegedly abducting and torturing a 60-year-old auto driver for ransom, officials said. In his police complaint, the auto driver said the accused hailed his vehicle.

The auto driver alleged that as he reached the accused’s home on Dhandran Road, he asked him to wait as he fetched the fare. “As he did not come out, I knocked on the door. He then pulled me inside and thrashed me,” the auto driver said in his complaint.

The officials said the accused, identified as Ranbir Singh of City Enclave, Dhandhran Road, held the victim captive at his house on March 17.

Police said the auto driver, Jagdish Prasad from Sunet village, managed to escape on March 18 and approached cops. By the time, the accused allegedly tortured the victim and cut him with a knife. He asked his family to pay a ₹2-lakh ransom for his release.

After the complaint, a case was filed at the Sadar police station.

“When I refused to call my family for ransom, the accused snatched my phone and started making the ransom calls. On March 18, he left the house after locking me inside and took away my phone. I broke the windowpane by hitting it with a gas cylinder and jumped outside. I raised an alarm in the street and the locals came to my rescue,” Prasad said.

Sadar station-house officer (SHO) inspector Avtar Singh said the case was registered under sections 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 118(1) (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous weapons or means),127 (wrongful confinement), 351(3) (criminal intimidation) and 308 (2) (extortion) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

In his statement, the accused told the police that he needed money for the treatment of his ailing father. Police said they are investigating to find out if anyone else was involved in the crime.