CHANDIGARH, September 17: The law and order situation touched its lowest EBB yesterday when the 20-year old grandson of Seth Kishan Dass, Haryana Minister for Town and Country Planning, was kidnapped.The boy, Madhur, was let off with several injuries on his chest. His gold chain, bracelet, wrist watch and Rs 1,500 was robbed.The police have registered a case under Section 394 of the Indian Penal Code, SSP K. K. Sharma said.Madhur, who was admitted to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, is convalescing in Ward Number 5. He is a student of MBA at Maharishi Dayanand University.Madhur said that he left his home at 6:15 p.m. to visit his farmhouse on Gohana road. ``A blue-coloured Maruti car intercepted my car at the railway crossing near the new bus stand. Two youths - one brandishing a revolver and the other, a knife - pounced upon me. They attacked me with a sharp-edged weapon on my chest. Later they ordered me to occupy the back seat. One of them sat with me on back seat while another sat at the wheel. Later my hands were tied''.``The blue car later headed towards Delhi,'' said Madhur. ``The man sitting next to me kept the barrel of the revolver on my stomach''.``I was shell-shocked,'' he said. ``The car kept on racing on the roads of Rohtak for nearly one hour, without stopping for a moment. They kept on questioning me. They asked me my name. When said I was Madhur, they retorted: `No you are Raghubir.' I showed my driving license and books to convince them''.At 7:15 p.m. the car was diverted towards Hisar. ``I was blind-folded,'' said Madhur. The car stopped and the petrol tank was unlocked. They asked me to pay Rs 200.``The abductors threw me in the fields on some link road, near Madina,'' said Madhur. ``They tied my hands and legs took off my gold chain, bracelet, wrist watch and cash amounting to Rs 1,500 before throwing me in the fields''.``After struggling for nearly 20 minutes, I managed to free one hand. Then I removed my shackles. A scooterist give me lift to Madina, from where I came to Rohtak in a taxi-cab''.Asked if he had any enmity in University, he replied in the negative.Seth Kishan Dass said, ``My grandson was stabbed in the chest. They threw him in the fields. It was good luck that he managed to reach here. He will remain under observation for the next 48 hours''.O. P. Jindal, Madhur's maternal grandfather, was critical of the law and order situation in the state. He said ``Where is the law ? If the grandson of a senior cabinet Minister can be abducted, only God can help the poor''.He demanded deterrent punishment for criminals. He expressed his apprehension that the law and order situation would deteriorate further.SSP K. K. Sharma said tha police flashed wireless messages to try to catch the abductors, but it seems they managed to escape.Madhur has identified a photo of a criminal resembling one of his abductors, Sharma said. He said the abductor is from Hisar and the police has rushed to bring him here.Former Home Minister Subhash Batra has demanded the dismissal of the Bansi Lal government as law and order machinery in the state has collapsed. In a memorandum submitted to the Haryana Governor through the Deputy Commissioner, he said it appears that the mafia was active in the district. The Illegal weapons were being sold to criminals.He expressed the fear that Haryana in general and Rohtak in particular might become like the Doda district of Jammu. Murder, looting, eve teasing, robbery, kidnapping, rape and illegal transferring of property have become the order of the day.Criminals were ruling the roost in Haryana, Batra said. If the life of a Minister's grandson was not safe, the plight of the not-so-well off could be imagined. It was the moral responsibility of the Chief Minister to step down after this incident, he said.He urged the Governor to obtain a report from independent sources and if convinced, to dismiss the Bansi Lal government.
