Despite tip-off, cops helpless as dacoit loots

What may sound like a cliche from a Bollywood potboiler of the 70s, is turning out to be the Karauli police’s worst nightmare. Ram Avtar alias Autari, whose writ runs through a 150-km stretch — sandwiched between Bharatpur, Karauli and Dholpur — has been raiding one temple after the other to install, what he calls, his vijay ghant.

Autari’s gang is known to be among the largest in the area. He is wanted in more than 20 cases of loot, abduction, extortion and murder. Over the past few months, the 35-year-old has raided three major temples in the region to put up huge brass gongs bearing his name and prayers. Not only have the police been unable to stop the dacoit, they have also failed to remove the symbol of the dacoit’s exploits from the temples. And all this despite advance information.

On Saturday, when the dacoit landed at the Jagdish Temple, the police were already expecting him. While the rural legend claims Autari had warned the police of his intentions, the police deny it stating they had mustered up intelligence on his activities.

Eluding a small police party camping near the temple, Autari slipped into the shrine, installed the gong, fired a shot in jubilation and fled. The exasperated police only managed to pull down the gong and take it to the station.

Enraged that the police had acted against Autari, 5,000 Gurjars of the area blocked the traffic for nearly four hours. They backed out only after the police returned the gong to them, which was later put up at the temple.

The police blame it on the caste-equations. ‘‘For us Autari is a criminal. But like Veerappan he has become a hero of his community. With so much local support available, the police are helpless,’’ said Range IG Shankar Suroliya. ‘‘The Gurjars see his acts as religious exploits. They don’t think of him as a criminal.’’