By IANS,
Zirakpur (Punjab) : A young married couple was kidnapped by three armed men on the Chandigarh-Delhi highway Thursday, police said. While the husband was freed by the kidnappers, the wife was being held for ransom.
Shekhar and Shelija were driving in their car on National Highway 21 and were going to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh. They were returning from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh.
Shekhar stopped the car near the Zirakpur flyover, around 10 km from the state capital Chandigarh, to drink some water when three men pretending to be police officials approached them.
“They told us that they were Punjab Police officials in civil dress and wanted to verify our details. However, they took out a gun and pointed it at my head and two of them entered our car while the third followed us on his motorcycle,” Shekhar told IANS.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dera Bassi) J.S. Khera told IANS: “They took the car towards Chatt village, around five km from here, and demanded Rs.20,000 from them.”
“But the couple did not have that much cash with them so the accused dropped Shekhar at Chatt village and taking Shelija with them, drove the car towards Patiala. We have alerted the police force of the neighbouring districts and at the checkposts of the region.”
Shekhar called his wife’s phone and the kidnappers told him that they will call back in 30 minutes to tell him where to deliver the money. The kidnappers called back and this time raised their ransom demand to Rs.100,000.
Police sources said that the kidnappers were seen in a village in Patiala district, around 50 km from here.