Rs 20 lakh looted on highway in Punjab

Gurdaspur, Apr 25 (UNI) Four armed robbers today looted Rs 20 lakh, which were being transferred to the State Bank of India (SBI) branch in Batia village in a car from a branch of the bank in Batala.

According to police sources, the four miscreants, three of whom were armed with pistols, forced the car carrying the cash to come to a halt near Dalla village. The robbers, who too were in a car, overpowered the armed guard who was in the car carrying the cash along with two employees of the SBI branch at Batia village.

Brandishing pistols and a knife, they forced one of the bank employees to open the safe. They then stacked the money in a bag and escaped in their car.

The money was being transferred from Batala to Batia for payment to the farmers by the commission agents for the purchase of their wheat.

A case has been registered at the Khanuwan police station. The bank empoyees of the SBI branches at Batala and Batia were being questioned as the standing orders for all banks to seek a police escort while transferring large chunks of money from one branch to the other, had been violated.

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