Belagavi district Superintendent of Police K. Ramarajan on Sunday said the district police would extend full cooperation to the Maharashtra police in the investigation into the alleged Rs 400-crore robbery reported at Chorla Ghat, a tri-junction of the Karnataka, Goa, and Belagavi borders.
Addressing reporters, the SP said the Nashik police had written a letter on January 6 regarding the incident. Following this, a team comprising the Khanapur sub-inspector and three personnel from Khanapur and Nandgad, who are fluent in Marathi, was sent to Nashik. He added that the Deputy Superintendent of Police is monitoring the matter and updating him on a daily basis. If Nashik police wish to speak to senior officers, staff have been instructed to connect them directly with him.
The SP said the complaint filed by Sandeep Datta Patil in Nashik stated that he was kidnapped on October 22 by five persons, who allegedly forced him into a Fortuner car and assaulted him. The kidnappers reportedly told him that Rs 400 crore had been robbed on October 16 and claimed they suspected him of being part of the gang, demanding that he return the money.
He also clarified that the exact location of the alleged robbery is still not known, as the ghat section falls on the borders of three states. “There is no one who has seen the incident or any eyewitness,” he said.
Sub-inspector Biradar, who was sent to Nashik, spoke to Sandeep Patil, who stated that he had not witnessed the robbery and came to know about it only after the kidnappers accused him of involvement. The Karnataka police team has not yet had the opportunity to question the arrested kidnappers.
The SP stated that if preparations for the offence took place in Maharashtra and the robbery occurred within Karnataka’s limits, there were two legal options: either the Maharashtra police could register the FIR and file the chargesheet there, or a case could be registered in Karnataka. He explained that under Section 198 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), an offence that begins in one place and ends in another can be registered in either jurisdiction.
He added that if the Belagavi police receive concrete information such as eyewitness accounts, victim details or particulars of the containers involved, they are prepared to take up the investigation if required.
