JORHAT, June 21 - Amidst rapid increase in incidents of cash and mobile phone snatchings, burglaries and vehicle lifting taking place with alarming regularity in and around Jorhat town since the past four to five months, another incident of cash snatching of Rs 4 lakh reportedly took place on Thursday.
According to a police source, an employee of a local businessman, named Inder Gattani had withdrawn Rs 4 lakh from the Allahabad Bank branch at the busy Gar-Ali locality as per Gattani�s instruction at around 2 pm, and thereafter he came out of the bank with the cash which he was carrying in a bag.
The employee, identified as Rakesh Rajak, then reportedly felt severe itching on his back after someone threw some powder on him.
The source stated that Rajak then came to Old Balibat area and entered a shop named Roop Milan, the owner of which was reportedly a relative of Gattani, to keep the bag and examine his itching back.
As Rajak kept the bag on the floor and was scratching his back, a youth rushed into the shop and decamped with the bag of cash, the source said.
By the time Rajak raised an alarm, the youth was seen joining a man wearing a full-mask helmet on a motorcycle. The duo immediately sped away, the source stated.
On Wednesday, residents of Rajahowli in Baligaon area here staged a demonstration in front of the Superintendent of Police against alleged police failure for nabbing the thieves who committed theft in four houses of the locality on the night of June 8.
The protesters, who later submitted a memorandum to the SP, alleged that a nexus exists between a section of police with the criminals.
In view of the allegations, Jorhat SP Vaibhav Nimbalkar directed Additional Superintendent of Police (Headquarters) Prakash Sonowal to inquire into the allegation that a section of police were in nexus with the anti-socials and submit a report in this regard within one week.
