Haryana: ASI nabbed for running extortion racket, manages to flee from police custody

According to police, the men who they initially arrested were Anil Bhalla, a resident of Sector 2, Panchkula; Narendra Khillan, resident of Sector 10, Panchkula; and ASI Gurmez Singh (in-charge, police post, Sector 2, Panchkula). Police claimed that Anil Bhalla had 180 complaints taht had been registered against him at various police stations since 2016-17.

Police said that one Akash Bhalla, son of accused Anil Bhalla, is yet to be arrested. Two policemen — head constables, Rajbir Singh and Naresh Kumar — both posted at police post, Sector 2, Panchkula, from whose custody ASI Gurmez Singh escaped, were later put under suspension.

While Anil Bhalla and Narendra Khillan were produced at a local court and remanded in three days of police custody on Friday, an additional case of escaping from police custody was lodged against ASI Gurmez Singh.

According to the police, the gang used to trap their targets in the name of loans and then extort money from them by threatening to implicate them in false cases.

Addressing the media on Friday, Panchkula Commissioner of Police, Hanif Qureshi, along with DCP (Panchkula), Surinder Pal Singh, and ACP, Vijay Kumar, said, “The complaint in the case was filed by one Sanjeev Garg, a Panchkula resident, who had alleged that Anil Bhalla had taken Rs 45 lakh from him in the name of facilitating a loan and foreign travel. After that, when the complainant demanded the money back from Bhalla for not facilitating the loan, he threatened to kill him and also get him implicated in false cases. After receiving the complaint, a probe was carried out by ACP Vijay Kumar, whose report found the allegations to be prima facie correct, following which a case under various sections of IPC was registered at Sector 5, Panchkula”.

“Primary probe also revealed that the accused, in connivance with police personnel, filed a false case against the complainant and demanded cash and luxury cars from him to let him off. In this regard, fake documents of a car were also prepared,” the officers said.

In response to a question, Qureshi said, “In the past there were several complaints against the accused Anil Bhalla in different cases. The police have received about 180 complaints against him since 2016-17.”

Police also disclosed that the kingpin of the gang, Anil Bhalla, worked as a financer and blackmailed people by getting them to sign blank papers in the name of loans. He then used the papers to usurp their property by threatening to implicate them in false cases.

“ASI Gurmez Singh managed to flee from custody and is absconding. A separate case against him has been registered. The ASI and the head constables, Rajbir Singh and Naresh Kumar have been placed under suspension. Police have also launched a manhunt for the fourth accused, Akash Bhalla, who is absconding,” Qureshi said.