A 39-year-old man who had come to receive sportsperson Manjit Singh Chahal at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Monday became a victim of theft on Thursday, the police said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (IGI) Sanjay Bhatia said that the accused has been arrested.
Mr. Manjit represented India in Asian Games and has won a gold medallist in 800 metres event.
Dividyal Gill, from Ujhana, said that he along with over 50 others had come to receive Mr. Chahal at the airport when the incident happened.
“I realised that a man was putting his hand in my pocket. I immediately caught him and alerted others,” Mr Gill said. They informed the police and the man was handed over to them. He was later identified as Saleem, a resident of Ghaziabad’s Khoda Colony.
Questions security
By the time Mr. Gill realised, the accused had stolen ₹5,000 from his pocket and ₹20,000 from his friend’s pocket, the victim alleged.
“There was clearly a racket running at the airport over stealing valuables and then handing them to others. They took advantage of crowd who had come to receive the sportsperson,” he said.
Mr. Gill also questioned the security arrangement during the arrival of Mr. Manjit. The victim also said that the money has not been recovered. “There were police officers but the accused were working without any fear,” he alleged.
A case under Sections 379 (punishment for theft) and 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered, the DCP said.
“These incidents stopped after we had busted one such gang and arrested a few persons. The security arrangement was tight on the day of the incident as an Assistant Commissioner of Police rank officer was supervising the situation. However, the security has been beefed up after the incident,” he said, adding that further investigation is under way.
