In a swift breakthrough, the Kangra Police arrested two accused involved in a chain-snatching incident in the Mandir Bazaar area of Kangra within just four days of the crime. The accused were traced and apprehended from Mahendragarh in Haryana and Jaipur in Rajasthan.
According to Superintendent of Police Ashok Rattan, the incident took place in the early morning hours of May 20, 2026, when an elderly woman, identified as Shanta Guliani, was on her way to a temple in the Kangra market area.
Police said that around 6:00 AM, two youths riding a motorcycle without a registration number plate approached the woman. One of the accused allegedly covered her mouth to prevent her from raising an alarm, while the other snatched a gold chain weighing nearly three tolas from her neck before fleeing the spot. The value of the stolen chain is estimated at around тВ╣4.5 lakh.
Following the incident, Kangra Police registered FIR No. 79/26 under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Kangra Police Station and launched an intensive investigation. Police teams immediately began examining CCTV footage from toll plazas and cameras installed in the Kangra market area.
Through technical surveillance and sustained investigation, police identified the suspects as scrap traders from outside Himachal Pradesh. Acting on specific intelligence inputs, police teams conducted raids and arrested the following accused:
Rahul (24) from Mahendragarh, Haryana
Sunny Kumar (28) from Jaipur, Rajasthan
During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they had sold the stolen gold chain to a jeweller in Kiratpur, Punjab, while travelling towards Haryana. Acting on the information, police recovered the stolen chain from Shelly Jewellers in Kiratpur. The shop owner, Mahesh Verma, has also been booked for allegedly purchasing the stolen property.
Both accused were scheduled to be produced before the court on Monday.
