Sambhal: Reminiscent of the Bollywood films of the yore, a contractor building a road in Sambhal district of Uttar Pradesh is absconding with a treasure of gold and silver coins dating back to the Mughal era unearthed during the excavation work after which police have launched a manhunt to nab him, sources said.
The incident has come to light in Hargovindpur village of Junwai area in Sambhal district on Tuesday. It is learnt that excavation work was going on for the road construction being executed under the supervision of village head Kamlesh. Jitendra Kumar, a local resident said that the soil for the road was being brought from the farm of Maniram Singh, resident of Lahra Nagla Shyam.
During the excavation work, the workers suddenly unearthed an earthen pot filled with gold and silver coins, Kumar said. According to the village head, the contractor on seeing the treasure fled with the coins even as some villagers and workers also managed to get a few coins. It is believed that the coins date back to the 18th century Mughal era.
As soon as the news about the treasure spread in the area, a crowd of villagers gathered at the spot. Following inputs, the local SDM Ramesh Babu and CO Alok Kumar also reached the spot to take stock of the situation. Village head Kamlesh has filed a complaint against the contractor after which police are investigating the matter.
The weight of the coins is said to be over one kilogram. Police station in-charge Anil Kumar said that a complaint has been received and the entire matter is being investigated.
