In a case that has drawn significant legal and public scrutiny, the Uttar Pradesh Police in Lakhimpur Kheri have filed a final report closing a decade-long investigation into the disappearance of gold jewellery worth approximately Rs 1 crore from a police malkhana.
The case, which involves a bizarre defence claiming that monkeys carried away the valuables after they were left on a roof to dry, has left the claimant’s family awaiting compensation despite previous court orders. The local district court previously rejected this explanation as “unbelievable,” noting that gold ornaments could not be destroyed by rain and should never have been left unattended in an open area.
The saga traces back to Diwali night in 2007, following the suicide of Rani Agarwal, also known as Julie. During the post-mortem examination, doctors recovered several gold items from her body, including a nose pin, a gold chain with a locket, a gold ring, and ten bangles. These items were subsequently handed over to the Sadar Kotwali police and deposited in the malkhana, a secure storeroom for evidence, as case property in connection with a dowry death case filed against the woman's husband, Mudit Agarwal, and his family members.
The criminal trial proceeded for nearly 17 years, during which the gold remained in police custody. On February 28, 2024, the court acquitted all the accused due to a lack of solid evidence. Following this acquittal, Mudit Agarwal moved the court to seek the release of his wife’s jewellery. It was at this juncture that the police informed the court that the ornaments were no longer in their possession, offering an explanation that has since been widely derided by the public and legal experts.
In their official response, the police claimed that bundles stored in the malkhana up until September 2013 had become wet due to rain. To dry the contents, officials allegedly placed the packages on the roof of the police station. According to the police version, monkeys subsequently attacked and scattered the bundles, leading to the loss of the gold jewellery. This claim was even submitted in a written affidavit to the court, asserting that some gold had “melted” in the rain while the rest was stolen by the animals.
The district court, presided over by then Sessions Judge Lakshmikant Shukla, found the theory scientifically and logically unsound. The court observed that gold is a noble metal that does not dissolve or melt in rainwater, a process that requires specialised chemicals such as aqua regia. Furthermore, the court questioned why sensitive case property would be left exposed in an open area, suggesting instead that the items may have been misappropriated by police personnel who then made false entries in official records to hide the theft.
In July 2024, the court directed the registration of an FIR and ordered a thorough investigation into the missing property. Recently, Lakhimpur Kheri SP Khyati Garg confirmed that the investigation concluded that the property disappeared during the tenure of two former head constables who were in charge of the malkhana. However, because both officials have since passed away, the police have submitted a final report to close the case, stating that criminal proceedings cannot be initiated against deceased individuals.
Advocates for the family have alleged that these shifting versions are an attempt by the police to shield whoever was actually responsible for the theft.
