Interstate thief who hid underwater for 5 hours, breathing through a lotus stem, held in Madhya Pradesh

BHOPAL/JABALPUR: Straight out of a Hollywood-style survival script, an inter-state thief hid underwater fornearly five hours using a lotus stem to breathe before being finally nabbed by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) with the help of divers. One of themost wanted criminals on Indian Railways' radar, investigators suspect his role in more than 500 train theft cases over the last decade.RPF officials identified him as Harvinder Singh (32), a resident of Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh, after matching his photograph with an old Mumbai Mirror report dated August 7, 2018, and verifying details through ICJS records.Rajeev Kumar Yadav, IG, RPF, said, "We are now receiving calls from multiple states enquiring about him. Chennai authorities have also shared his video footage, and we are examining it as part of the investigation."Officials said he has more than 21 criminal cases registered against him across different states, including Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tami Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, and is also wanted in over a dozen other cases.Investigators added that he had been operating across a wide stretch of the country, from Kerala in the south toJammuin the north,mainly targeting passengers on trains. He avoided detection by not carrying identity documents andfrequently changing SIM cards.

Multiple warrants are pending against him.The operation took place early on April 6 atSihorarailway station under the Jabalpur division. Around 4.50 am, RPF personnel on preventive deployment noticed a man getting down froma train from the off side and attempting to leave the station premises hurriedly. His movements raised suspicion, especially after inputs that he had tried to steal a woman's purse inside the train moments earlier.RPF staffgaveachase.Realisinghe was being followed, the accused ran towards the nearby local market area and jumped into a moss-covered pond located close to the station. Within seconds, he disappeared beneath the surface.For the next several hours, the accused remained hidden underwater. Police said he used a hollow lotus stem to draw air intermittently, allowing him to stay submerged and avoid detection. RPF personnel secured the area around the pond and kept a constant watch, suspecting he was still inside.Local police were informed and divers were called to the spot. After sustained search efforts, the accused waslocatedand pulled out of the pond. Even after being brought out, he made another attempt to flee but was caught after a minor struggle, during which RPF personnel sustained minor injuries.Officials said Harvinder had earlier been elected as a municipal councillor in Haldaur town of Bijnor district in 2017.

Past records show that he had allegedly carried out at least 14 train thefts since 2015, including incidents on long-distance routes such as the Mumbai Central-Indore Express, and was suspected of targeting premium trains.Investigators said his method involved boarding air-conditioned coaches on valid tickets, waiting for passengers to fall asleep, stealing valuables such as cash,jewelleryand even weapons, and passing the loot to associates in other coaches before quietly deboarding at intermediate stations.

In one such case, he was linked to theft of a licensed pistol,ammunitionand Rs 1.9 lakh cash from a passenger.His activities first came under scrutiny after he was arrested by police in Andhra Pradesh in 2018, when valuables including gold and diamonds were recovered from him. Though he was released on bail, he allegedly continued his activities and remained on the run in multiple cases.RPF registered a case under relevant provisions of the Railway Act at Jabalpur and produced him before a court. Acting on an application by GRP Bhopal, the court handed over his custody to them for further investigation. The operation was carried out under Operation Yatri Suraksha by a team led by IPF RajivKharb, along with SI Arvind and constables Vinay Mourya and Ashish Yadav.