16 August,2014 07:44 AM IST | | Dimple Bhavsar
19 passengers who had lost their jewellery, mobile phones and cash, got their belongings back after the Bandra Government Railway Police had successfully recovered them from the thieves
While celebrations were in full swing on the country's 68th Independence Day, a group of people had another cause for joy. They had received their belongings that had been stolen in the train, recovered by the Government Railway Police (GRP).
The Bandra GRP said it takes time to trace the thieves, but people need to have faith in them
In an event organised by the Bandra GRP, police officials returned cash, mobile phones, jewellery worth Rs 2.81 lakh to the eager bunch of 19 passengers who had gathered there. These people had lost their valuables over the course of last year and this year.
Happy lot
Aikal Kunal Shah (30) was travelling in the first-class coach of the Vapi passenger on March 26 this year, while on her way to Umbergaon, her hometown. At 9 am, two men posing as ticket checkers asked her to show her ticket and robbed her of her jewellery, mobile phone and cash by threatening to "chop her son to pieces with a knife" if she resisted.
Aikal incurred a total loss of Rs 1.14 lakh, which included her mobile phone, gold jewellery and R6,000 in cash. "Bandra GRP was in constant touch with me all this while and updated me about the recovery of my valuables. Thanks to them, I got them back," she said while beaming with joy.
Rupali Gadre (37), while travelling on the Ahmedabad-Bandra passenger in July 2013, was looted of her mobile phone worth R37,000. "I got robbed within a month of my husband gifting the phone to me. I'd lost all hopes, but got a call from the railway police for verification.
This phone has sentimental value for me," she said. Engineer Hardik Mota (25), another such passenger had his smartphone worth Rs 10,000 stolen, while travelling from Bandra to Sion. He, too, was one of the lucky ones to get it back.
