Patna, Dec 12: A shocking incident has emerged from Samastipur’s Vidyapati police station area, where four men posing as police personnel stole goats purchased under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Women’s Employment Scheme.

The incident occurred on Friday in Dhaneshwarpur South Panchayat, Ward No. 9, when the victim, Champa Devi and her family were asleep.

Suddenly, a four-wheeler pulled up outside their home, and the men inside woke the family.

Claiming they were police officials searching for a liquor mafia suspect, the men forcibly entered the premises.

Inside, they took away four goats that Champa Devi had bought using the Rs 10,000 financial assistance she received under the Women’s Employment Scheme.

When she tried to stop them, the accused reportedly brandished a pistol, abused her, and threatened to kill her.

“They said they were police and that a liquor mafia had passed that way. They showed a pistol and told us to move aside. Fearing for our lives, we stepped back. They loaded all four goats into their vehicle and fled,” said Champa Devi.

The same group allegedly targeted another house nearby, stealing three more goats.

According to the victims, they too had purchased the goats with government assistance.

Before the villagers could understand what was happening, the thieves fled in their vehicle with all seven goats.

Locals have demanded strict police action. However, Vidyapati police said they are awaiting a formal complaint to begin proceedings.

“A report of theft has been received, but no application has been filed yet. Action will be taken as soon as we receive it. The gang involved is being investigated,” said Suraj Kumar, Police Officer, Vidyapati Police Station.

The area has witnessed several such goat thefts in the past. Thieves often arrive in four-wheelers—not on motorcycles or on foot—making quick escapes difficult to track.

In an earlier incident a few years ago, villagers even held a DSP hostage after mistaking him for a goat thief.

Under Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Women’s Employment Scheme, women are provided Rs 10,000 each to start income-generating activities.

So far, 1.56 lakh women have received the amount. After six months of evaluation, beneficiaries showing positive outcomes become eligible for Rs 2 lakh in additional support to expand their ventures.

Thane: The Anti-Extortion Squad of the Crime Branch, Thane, acting on secret information, raided a gang involved in the illegal sale of Mephedrone (M.D.) and arrested two accused. Police seized 108.8 grams of Mephedrone worth Rs 10.88 lakh, a country-made pistol, and a live cartridge—totaling Rs 11.41 lakh.

According to the sequence of events, on the night of December 8 around 10:50 PM, the police team raided Shri Gajanan Residency in Adavali-Dhokali, Kalyan East, and caught Aakib Iqbal Bagwan (33). A large quantity of M.D. and an unlicensed country-made pistol were recovered from his possession. Further probe revealed that Bagwan was already wanted in two NDPS cases at Bazarpeth Police Station, Kalyan.

During interrogation, Bagwan disclosed that the pistol was supplied to him by Bharat Shatrughna Yadav. Using technical investigation and confidential sources, the police detained Yadav as well. A live cartridge was recovered from him during the search.

A case has been registered against both the accused at Manpada Police Station under relevant sections of the NDPS Act, the Indian Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Police Act.

The operation was carried out under the guidance of DCP Amarsingh Jadhav and ACP Vinay Ghorpade by Senior Police Inspector Shailesh Salvi, Assistant Police Inspector Sunil Tarmale, and team members Bhosle, Kanade, Thakur, Rathod, Shinde, Patil, Gaikwad, Jadhav, Gadge, Pavaskar, Hivare, Waykar, Shejwal, and Bhosle.

New Delhi, Dec 12: A special CBI court in Lucknow has sentenced two individuals — a former village pradhan and a fair-price shopkeeper — to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in a major corruption case involving misappropriation of over Rs one crore under the Sampurna Grameen Rozgar Yojna (SGRY), the agency said on Friday.

The verdict was delivered on Thursday. According to an official release, the court convicted Satya Narayan Prasad Patel, then village pradhan, and Shahnawaj Alam, then fair-price shopkeeper (kotedar), imposing a total fine of Rs 55,000 on the two.

The court held them guilty of causing wrongful loss to the government exchequer by siphoning off cash and foodgrains allocated for rural employment and welfare.

The case dates to 2006, when Narhi Police Station in Ballia district registered an FIR alleging large-scale irregularities in SGRY distribution.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the probe on October 31, 2008 and registered a case against 172 accused persons, including officials responsible for implementing the scheme at the village and district levels.

Investigators found that the accused caused a wrongful loss of Rs 65 lakh in cash and misappropriated foodgrain worth Rs 45.26 lakh, preparing forged records and using fraudulent means to divert government resources intended for the rural poor.

“It was alleged that the accused persons had caused wrongful loss to the Government Exchequer to the tune of Rs 65.00 lakh in cash and foodgrain worth Rs 45.26 lakh and corresponding gain to themselves by cheating, fraud, and preparing forged documents under Sampurna Grameen Rozgar Yojna (SGRY),” the CBI said in its press note.

After a detailed investigation, the CBI filed a charge sheet on November 10, 2010, against three individuals: Satyendra Singh Gangwar, then Chief Finance and Accounts Officer of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Ballia; Satya Narayan Prasad Patel; and Shahnawaj Alam.

Following the trial, the CBI court convicted Patel and Alam but acquitted Gangwar of all charges.