Thief enters locked First AC coupe, steals Rs 8 lakh jewellery; couple claims no police response despite 3 alarm chain pulls at Lucknow station

LUCKNOW: A couple travelling with their one-year-old child in a First AC coach of a train alleged that gold jewellery worth Rs 7-8 lakh and around Rs 35,000 in cash were stolen from their locked coupe at Lucknow's Charbagh railway station in the early hours of November 2.Despite repeated calls to the railway helpline and pulling the alarm chain three times, no GRP or RPF personnel turned up to assist them at the station, the couple claimed.The incident occurred around 1.20am aboard train number 15726, when Umesh Kumar, 31, his wife Sunita Kumari, 30, and their child were travelling from Anand Vihar to Deoria on berths E13 and E14 of H1 coach.Umesh, who works with a private firm in Delhi, married Sunita in 2023. The family, originally from Bhore in Bihar's Gopalganj district, was heading home to celebrate Diwali and Chhath.Speaking to TOI, Umesh said he had fallen asleep on the upper berth while his wife and child were sleeping below. The coupe was locked from inside."My wife suddenly woke up and saw a tall, heavily built man dressed in black standing inside the coupe. He appeared to be putting something into his pocket. When she noticed him, he apologised, claiming he had mistakenly entered the wrong cabin, and walked away," Umesh said.Within a minute, Sunita discovered that her purse had been ransacked and the jewellery and cash were missing."The jewellery was purchased during our wedding. Its present value would be Rs 7-8 lakh. Around Rs 30,000-35,000 in cash was also stolen," Sunita told TOI.Umesh claimed that the intruder had managed to open the coupe door from outside despite its being locked internally.He said police personnel who subsequently met them at Gonda station demonstrated how the door could be opened from outside even when locked from within.Following the theft, Sunita alerted the onboard travelling ticket examiner (TTE), while the couple pulled the alarm chain repeatedly to stop the train from leaving Lucknow."Despite pulling the chain three times and making several calls, no policeman came to help us at Charbagh. We first encountered police personnel at Gonda after contacting emergency helpline 112," Umesh alleged.According to the National Train Enquiry System (NTES), the train, running one hour and 40 minutes late, arrived at platform number two of Charbagh station at 1.15 am and departed for Gonda at 1.35am. The GRP and RPF police stations are located on platform number one.Trains ordinarily have RPF or GRP personnel deployed for security duties. However, it could not immediately be ascertained whether a security squad was present aboard this particular train.Umesh claimed he contacted railway helpline 139 around three times, but the operators only registered his complaint and provided a reference number. No immediate assistance followed, he alleged."By the time they forwarded the complaint, the train would have left the station. I kept asking them how that would help us," he said.The couple subsequently lodged a Zero FIR with GRP Deoria around 9am on November 2.GRP Charbagh SHO Dharamveer Singh told TOI, "We have reached out to the victim to ascertain the sequence of events. The probe is on. The Zero FIR copy is yet to be received from GRP Deoria."TOI also attempted to contact the onboard TTE, from whom the couple had sought assistance, but his phone was switched off.Umesh further claimed that he had noticed frequent movement through the connecting doorway between the First AC coach, the 19th coach from the locomotive, and an adjoining general coach during the journey. He said the doorway was repeatedly opened and closed.Meanwhile, a video of Sunita narrating the incident has surfaced on social media. In the video, she expressed anguish over the lack of police assistance despite repeated calls and alarm chain pulling."This is Yogi's govt, yet there has been no response. Tell me, what am I supposed to do? Nobody is coming to help us. If we are not safe even inside a locked cabin, where will we be safe? Fortunately, my child was not abducted. What would I have done if someone had taken my child?" Sunita said in the video.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Lucknow | Silver Rate in Lucknow | Bank Holidays in Lucknow | Public Holidays in Lucknow | Lucknow AQI | Weather in Lucknow | Petrol Price in Lucknow | Diesel Price in Lucknow | CNG Price in Lucknow | LPG Price in LucknowStay updated with the latest Lucknow news. Download the TOI App.