GHAZIABAD: The lockers that had been burgled in the Punjab National Bank branch in Modinagar last year were held mostly by local traders, who are fighting a case at the consumer
forum in Delhi to claim losses incurred by them.
“We have little hope of the case getting cracked ever. After one year, the bank and police have shrugged off all responsibilities and liabilities. There has been no progress in the investigation whatsoever. We have subsequently filed a case in the
consumer forum in Delhi. It is our last hope,” said Mukesh Goyal, a trader dealing in animal foods in Modinagar.
The locker-holders have estimated their losses according to the current rates of gold and silver. “My losses add up to Rs 40 lakh. The
consumer case has been filed jointly by all those whose lockers were burgled,” said a former executive of Modi Textile Mills, Sudhir Bhatia.
Police said it was very difficult to ascertain the veracity of the claims made by the locker-holders. The police pointed out that the ownership of 24kg of gold burgled from a PNB branch in Sonepat in 2014 would be decided by a court. Haryana police had arrested three persons and recovered the gold which they had stolen from the bank.
“The bank does not make it mandatory for clients to disclose the contents of their lockers. In Haryana, for instance, even though the jewellery has been recovered, it will take years for the police to identify the owners,” said a bank source.
