Eggs thrown at jaggery merchant’s car near Budanur off Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway; robbed of Rs. 55,000

Mandya: After a lull of few months, a stretch of Mysuru-Bengaluru Highway passing through the district, is back in news, for the dacoits, who were underground, becoming active again, targeting the unsuspecting motorists. This time, they have been deploying a different modus operandi, by throwing eggs at cars before robbing off the travellers of their valuables.

Until recently, the dacoits were zeroing in on the lone travellers irrespective of two-wheelers, four-wheelers and those from outside the district and the State.

The recent incident of Vinod, a jaggery merchant from Guttalu in Mandya town, alludes at how the dacoits are back on the prowl. He was returning home after winding up the day’s business from Maddur to Mandya in his car, when the miscreants, who came in three motorbikes, threw eggs at the windscreen of his car near Budanur, while moving on the Service Road off the Highway.

Petrified, Vinod turned on the wiper of the windscreen to clean the albumen (liquid content) splashed on the screen, after the shell of the egg was broken. However, the albumen is a thick substance, which spread on the screen, thus diminishing the view. He stopped the car and started cleaning the wind screen by hand, when the miscreants, who came from behind, threw chilli powder in his eyes and decamped with Rs. 55,000 cash from him.

Earlier, a total of 14 cases were registered in Maddur, Mandya and Srirangapatna Police Stations limits and nine among them were cracked. Following this, there was a fall in such crimes.

B.K. Satish, a resident of Budanur, said that the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) seems to have constructed the Highway for the heck of implementing the works, without taking any precautionary measures. The Highway and Service Road lacks streetlight, plunging the stretch of road into dark. Now, the dacoits have deployed a new modus operandi to rob the motorists.

It is a first such case, where the dacoity is committed by using eggs, after I took charge as the Superintendent of Police (SP). The similar cases that had been reported earlier, had been cracked and the perpetrators were arrested in those cases. The investigation is being conducted to ascertain whether it is the handiwork of the new gang or old gang, but the case will be cracked soon. —Mallikarjun Baladandi, Superintendent of Police, Mandya