National

Mussoorie residents up in arms

MUSSOORIE: Residents of this hill station are up in arms against the police authorities for not being able to catch the criminals who stabbed local businessman Stephen Alter and his wife Ameeta after entering their Landour house here posing as carpenters this past Thursday.

The couple, related to the seasoned actor Tom Alter, are now recovering in a local hospital.

This brings the number of attacks on senior citizens living alone in the hill station to over two dozen in the past three years. “The criminals seem to be emboldened by the fact that the police have failed to crack even a single of the dozen murder cases over the past three years,” said an angry Anil Rawat who runs a grocery shop in Landour Bazar.

Seema Singh, an elderly resident, wondered what the top police officers in Dehra Dun meant by claiming that they had provided foolproof security to all elderly residents.

“The cops seem to have made the claim simply to please the Chief Minister who wants to develop the State as a safe destination for all,” she said.

Suresh Sharma, a social activist, said the killings and attacks on elderly citizen were aimed at forcing them to sell their property here at throwaway prices as real estate value had skyrocketed in Mussoorie since the creation of Uttarakhand. “The locals will be forced to undertake a fast unto death if the Government fails to provide security,” he added.

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