Chandigarh Police arrest two for abducting Mumbai hacker
To evade detection, Mumbai-based hacker Manish Bhangale was moved to various locations in Punjab before finally being brought to Hotel Naya Gaon in Chandigarh on September 15
: The Chandigarh Police have arrested two persons from Punjab linked to the abduction of Mumbai-based hacker Manish Bhangale, who created a furore when he alleged that BJP leader Eknath Khadse had been in contact with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
Bhangale claimed that he was forcibly detained by Ranjit Singh, 50, and Ravi Sharma, 35, along with their accomplices Lovepreet, Gurdev Singh Bhullar, and Vikramjit Singh. He said he had gone to Amritsar on April 26 for a data-scraping deal worth ₹6 lakh. On arrival, he was abducted and taken to Dharampur, Himachal Pradesh, where he endured severe physical abuse and threats.
He claimed that the captors demanded a huge sum of money from him, adding that he was tortured to transfer funds from multiple bank accounts containing several crores. To evade detection, he was moved to various locations in Punjab before finally being brought to Hotel Naya Gaon in Chandigarh on September 15.
During the investigation, police discovered a diary from the accused with the details of 25 to 30 Axis Bank accounts with substantial deposits. Bhangale claimed that he did not execute any fraudulent transactions and delayed the demands, prompting the police to verify his claims.
In a desperate attempt to escape, Bhangale faked a bomb threat while he was still being held captive. He told the police that he sent a hoax email to the authorities at Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport, Amritsar, on August 14, claiming six bombs were set to detonate unless he received ₹1 crore. He included his kidnappers’ contact details hoping that they would be arrested.
Following the bomb scare, the Amritsar police arrested two of the kidnappers, Gurdev Singh Bhullar and Vikramjit Singh. During questioning, they admitted to various criminal activities and implicated Bhangale as a co-conspirator, which is now under investigation by the Amritsar police.
Ranjit Singh from Marchowal village, Gurdaspur, has nine previous cases of cheating and forgery, including being declared a proclaimed offender by the Punjab Police, while Ravi Sharma from Hoshiarpur has no criminal record.
On Tuesday at 7.20 pm, a police patrol unit saw a silver Swift Dzire with three occupants near the Fragrance Garden, Sector 36. They noticed a man in the backseat signalling for help. As the police approached, the driver attempted to flee but was apprehended due to heavy traffic. The distressed man was identified as Bhangale, leading to the arrest of his kidnappers, Ranjit Singh and Ravi Sharma.
Who is Manish Bhangale?
Manish Bhangale, an ethical hacker from Maharashtra, created a furore in 2016 for claiming BJP leader Eknath Khadse was in contact with Dawood Ibrahim. He claimed that he hacked a Pakistani telecom operator to retrieve call records showing communications between Khadse and Dawood’s residence. In 2021, he claimed he was offered ₹5 lakh to obtain call data records of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan’s manager amid the Aryan Khan drug case.
