HYDERABAD: What was once restricted to secluded by-lanes and odd times of a day has now started occurring in broad daylight and even on the main roads. Chain-snatching, in the city today, is not a one-off crime incident. This, despite availability of CCTV footages, various tracking devices and technology at the disposal of law- enforcers.
While the Hyderbad police claim that the incidents of chain-snatching have been on a decline, the series of chain-snatching incidents on Tuesday has not come as a shocker.
One such case is that of 22-year-old Suvarna (name changed as per request), who hails from a remote village in Karimnagar district.
Despite being married off too early in life, she was determined to pursue education further.
Alien to the city life, soon after her son turned two, she decided to join a nearby government junior college to do Intermediate course. Today, she transformed into a miserable being who is short of confidence to even step out of home and desires to remain an unassuming homemaker.
It was about three weeks ago when her life turned around. Suvarna cycled her way to her college everyday from her Tukaramgate residence. On that fateful day, she decided to walk to the college and, to take a shorter route, chose the secluded lanes of Mahendra Hills. At one sudden moment, at about 10.30 am, she was attacked by a bike-riding masked man in an attempt to snatch her gold necklace. The snatcher, however, did not succeed as the lanky girl pulled back in a swift reaction and ran away crying out for help.
“I am not able to get over the images, not able to sleep, not able to focus on anything. It is almost three weeks and I do not even feel like going back to college,” she told her psychotherapist on Friday.
G Angela David of Sahayam, Osmania University’s psychological counselling centre, says that though Suvarna was unharmed, the incident has left a scar in her mind.
“Whenever she steps out of home she hallucinates that someone is following her. She is very stressed out and not interested in anything. When you are emotionally unsettled, it takes time to come back to normal life,” Angela points out.