Dreaded dacoit of Chitrakoot strikes again, abducts a farmer, demands Rs 50 lakh ransom

Kol, who has emerged from the woods after around two years, abducted the 55-year-old farmer --- Braj Mohan Prasad Pandey -- while he was at his home in Kolan village.
Dreaded dacoit of Chitrakoot strikes again, abducts a farmer, demands Rs 50 lakh ransom

LUCKNOW: UP’s most dreaded and wanted brigand of the present times – Babuli Kol-- who carries a reward of Rs 5.5 lakh on his head made his presence felt yet again when he abducted a farmer from his house in Chitrakoot on Independence Day and put forth a ransom demand of Rs 50 lakh to his relatives to secure his life and safe release, said the police sources.

Kol, who has emerged from the woods after around two years, abducted the 55-year-old farmer --- Braj Mohan Prasad Pandey -- while he was at his home in Kolan village under Manikpur area of Chitrakoot on Thursday around 9 pm. Two armed dacoits took the farmer away at gunpoint. They even locked his wife inside the house and went away with the mobile phones.

Later the victim’s brother Bharat Prasad Pandey received the ransom call on Friday morning. The caller threatened Pandey with dire consequences if he tried to contact the police. The calls were made from the mobile phones the abductors had taken away.

As per sources, the caller identified himself as Babuli Kol and asked the kin of the farmer in captivity to arrange the ransom money in two days’ time. The frightened family kept silent for sometime but on failing to arrange the huge ransom money, they informed the district police authorities. Subsequently, the abducted farmer’s kin lodged an FIR against Babuli Kol, most dreaded dacoit of Bundelkhand region and his accomplice Luvlesh Kol at the Manikpur police station in Chitrakoot on Saturday, said the sources.

Babuli Kol, who has a reign of terror across the terrains of Bundelkhand, is listed among the most wanted criminals on the UP Police website. The district police suspected it to be the handiwork of the dread brigand as Kol gang usually demands Rs 50 lakh ransom initially and later settles around 10-1 lakh after negotiations with the family of the victim, said the police sources.

The local police sources added that the victim was supposed to be a prosperous farmer who owned around 20 bigha land in the village. The local police sources claimed that Babuli Kol had over 50 cases of loot, kidnapping, abduction and murder registered against him. Despite many efforts and joint combing operations carried out by UP and MP police, the dacoit has been able to evade arrest so far.

The UP police had announced a reward of Rs. 5 lakh on his arrest in October 2017 while the MP police announced a reward of Rs. 50,000. Babuli’s aide Luvlesh carries a bounty of Rs. 1 lakh on his arrest. Meanwhile, the district police authorities were carrying on combing operation in dense woods of Chitrakoot region to trace the farmer and track down the dacoits.

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