13 days in Bishnoi heartland: Mumbai cops’ grit test in Pali

What unfolded over 13 days of investigation in Rajasthanrsquos Pali district mdash infamously known as the ldquoheartlandrdquo of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi mdash was nothing short of a test of grit for a team of Bhoiwada police officers The fivemember team had travelled there to track down three accused in a Rs 4 crore theft case The team was constantly shadowed by suspicious villagers had to cook its own meals of poha and bhindi sabzi and battled feelings of helplessness and hopelessness amid little cooperation from the local police and villagersThe Bhoiwada police vehicle which had a Maharashtra registration drew attention everywhere the team went When the team would enter a lane someone would immediately make a phone call informing othersSpeaking with midday PSI Sachin Shivajirao Borse Patil of Bhoiwada police who led the team recalled their journey ldquoIt was an important case and we were under pressure to nab the accused and recover the stolen gold and cash Our preliminary investigation in Mumbai showed that the accused had carried out the theft alone without any partners On the day of the crime he travelled to Borivli railway station and boarded the Amrapur Aravali Express which confirmed he was heading to his hometown in RajasthanrdquoThe police team was being stalked by suspicious people at the lodges where they stayed and on several occasions even noticed unknown vehicles tailing themThough the police were unsure where exactly the accused Jitu Navaram Chaudhary 23 would get off help from the railway police and CCTV footage at stations revealed that he had deboarded at Falna railway station Following his trail the police discovered that Chaudharyrsquos motive for getting down at Falna was to hand over the stolen items kept in a bag to a friend who in turn became the coaccused in the case Chaudhary after handing in the bag kept moving as he knew the police were tracking him He asked another friend the third accused to travel with him to his village in Pali districtThe cops requested lodges where they were staying to let them cook their own meals as they began falling sick due to the spicy unfamiliar taste of the local food when they couldnrsquot cook they consumed fruitsSmall delayThe police team was a little late to start off from Mumbai as they were tied up with technical investigations to trace Chaudharyrsquos location After a 16 18hour road journey to Rajasthan they were initially clueless about where to begin Believing Chaudhary had travelled from Falna to Jodhpur the team began searching there ldquoWe checked bus stands lodges restaurants everywhere but found nothing With technical help we tried to track Chaudharyrsquos location and after several failed attempts we finally realised he was in Pali districtrdquo said Patil This is where the daunting mission started which has now turned into a oneofakind memory etched into their livesAfter much struggle the Bhoiwada police managed to nab the accused with the help of a local team from Bali police station and assistance from Crime Branch Unit 4 officers ILLUSTRATIONSUDAY MOHITEldquoWe had to hire a local translator because no one would share any information with us even when we spoke in Hindi The lack of respect was clear as they looked at us as if they wanted to shoo us away Having a translator helped to some extent But our vehicle which had a Maharashtra registration drew attention everywhere we went Many times we noticed unknown vehicles tailing us and whenever we entered a lane someone would immediately make a phone call likely informing others about us It felt like the entire village was against us but we did not stop or turn backrdquo explained PatilPSI Sachin Borse making poha during their stay at a local lodge PICSBY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTNo ideaFor the first couple of days in Pali the police team moved around almost aimlessly They even had to change their vehiclersquos number plate to a Rajasthan registration and kept shifting their base as they were constantly being watched ldquoIn the past there have been instances where visiting police teams were trapped by villagers money would be planted in their vehicle or hotel and then local police would be alerted about alleged extortion So we tried to remain cautious as our only goal was to nab the accused and return to Mumbai safelyrdquo he addedFrom left Head Constable Santosh Khedekar PSI Sachin Borse and Police Constables Avinash Suttar and Pradeep RathodDuring the investigation police learned that Chaudhary was quite active on Instagram often posting reels Meanwhile two of his friends who had contacted him for help also landed in the police net Eventually it was these two who led the team to Chaudharyrsquos house a makeshift tent set up on barren land After a long chase he was arrested by the police with assistance of the local police in Bali a town in Pali districtThe police team headed to Jitu Chaudharyrsquos home in PaliDuring the 13day trip the first couple of days passed smoothly in terms of food but soon the police personnel began falling sick due to the spicy dishes and unfamiliar taste Rajasthanrsquos scorching heat made things worse Finally they decided to take matters into their own hands and requested lodge staff at each base to let them cook ldquoIn the mornings we made poha and at night we cooked bhindi sabzi and ate it with their bajra roti When we couldnrsquot cook we relied on local fruitsrdquo said PatilChecking inAmid the uncertainty and unsafe atmosphere Patil recalled it was their zonersquos DCP R Ragasudha who frequently called the team to check on their safety Meanwhile the team faced another challenge Apart from the Bhoiwada police Crime Branch Unit 4 was conducting a parallel investigation in the district Both teams were in the same area but unaware of each otherrsquos presence ldquoWe would randomly encounter Crime Branch officers at different spots At first we let them carry out their investigation but it was just wasting time so we decided to collaborate and share our inputs and intelrdquo Patil added Eventually both teams worked together to nab Chaudhary and bring him to Mumbai in transit remandGold recoveredThe police have managed to recover about 70 per cent of the stolen gold items but the cash is yet to be recovered Chaudhary remains in police custody During the investigation he revealed that his motive for the robbery was quick and easy money as he wanted to buy an SUV and an iPhone like his friends in the village Apart from PSI Patil the four personnel in the Bhoiwada police team were Head Constable Santosh Khedekar and Police Constables Avinash Suttar Pradeep Rathod and Shankar Joshi The Crime Branch Unit 4 team comprised five including an API rank officer