The owner of a handbag manufacturing unit helped the police arrest a gang of six men who under the guise of a human rights organisation raided the unit on Saturday afternoon. Dressed as officials with identity cards, they allegedly tried to extort a bribe from the owner.
The gang led by Ramachandra barged into the firm and threatened, Shabaaz, the owner, accusing him of employing child labourers. They allegedly threatened to shut down the unit and file a criminal case against him unless he paid them ₹2 lakh.
In his statement to the police, Shabaaz said they even inspected the unit and demanded refreshments while they waited for him to pay up. But suspecting that something was not quite right with the “officials”, Shabaaz alerted his friend, who, in turn, informed the police.
While the gang was waiting for the payment, the police arrived at the unit and took them to the police station for questioning. “A detailed probe revealed that Ramachandra is a rowdy-sheeter from Indiranagar,” said a police officer. The police recovered fake ID cards and visiting cards which said they are members of a well-known human rights organisation.
The other accused have been identified as Santosh Kumar, Praveen Kumar, Puttaraju, Karthik, and Nikhil Oliver.
