Panchkula: Robbers throw chilli powder in eyes, stab collection agent; loot Rs 15 lakh

According to eyewitnesses, at least three men were involved in the incident. While two men approached Narayan as soon as he stepped out of the shop on Monday, a third man waited with his bike a little distance away. After the attack, the trio fled on the bike towards Amartax Light Point, Sector 19.

The owner of the shop from where Laxmi Narayan made the last collection before being attacked on Monday said that he briefly chased the robbers but they managed to escape.

“Laxmi Narayan stepped out and had barely walked 20-30 meters, when I heard him shouting. I stepped out and saw two men beating up Narayan. One of them was carrying a knife and was stabbing his hands. I saw one of their accomplices waiting with a motorcycle some distance away. Laxmi Narayan attempted to run back towards my shop in a bid to save himself. But the men managed to snatch his bag that was loaded with cash. I tried to chase the robbers on my motorcycle but failed”.

An injured Laxmi Narayan was later rushed to the Panchkula civil hospital where he was administered stitches on both arms and discharged.

Investigators said that the robbers apparently were tailing the agent from Chandigarh and decided to attack him at Budhanpur village.

Nitin Kumar, the man under whom Laxmi Narayan worked, said, “Laxmi Narayan war carrying at least Rs 15 lakh, of which Rs 8.65 lakh had been collected on Sunday. He has been working with me for the last five years. We did not deposit yesterday’s payments in the bank as it was a Sunday. It is for the first time that such an incident has taken place.”

The police said that three teams from the district crime branch, Sector 19 crime cell and Sector 5 police station, rushed to the spot immediately after the incident and launched a probe. A case has been registered in this regard.