An official of the Wadhwan Nagar Palika in Surendranagar district is among three men arrested for posing as CBI officials in a case of theft. The mastermind, identified as Prahlad Nagar–resident Kapil Trivedi, is absconding. 

According to a police complaint filed by ad filmmaker Sumit Khanwani, BJP municipal worker Hitendrasinh Mori, Dhanrajsinh Rathod, Virendrasinh Chavda tried to plant “a white powder” and a beer bottle on him, and make off with his wallet. 

Khanwani claims that he was invited to meet one Saumil regarding the making of an advertisement in a room at the YMCA International Centre (YMCA). He says he later discovered that Trivedi had used the name “Gramir Joshi” to set up the meeting and book the room. 

What happened

During Khanwal’s meeting, three men barged in claiming to be officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation. They allegedly injured Khanwani, planted “a beer bottle and a packet of white powder” in his bag, and demanded his wallet. Still, Khanwani managed to record a video of three assailants before they fled. 

 Armed with his video evidence, Khanwal attempted to file a case with the Anandnagar police. However, he says, Inspector BK Bharai initially only accepted a simple application, and would not register a complaint until four days later. Eventually, the police investigation led to the arrest of Mori and his accomplices — all allegedly Trivedi’s friends — nine days after the incident. 

Khanwal claims that the police did nothing until he identified all the suspects and informed the police via social media; neither did they investigate the scene of the alleged crime. He also adds that the delay in filing the complaint allowed Trivedi, who lives barely 500m away from the Anand Nagar police station, enough time to evade the police.  

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