Three held in Gurugram extortion case targeting senior citizen

Police said investigations are underway to identify other members of the racket and to determine the scale of the gang’s operations.

With cases of extortion on the rise in Haryana, Gurugram police on Saturday arrested three people, including a lawyer, for allegedly “honey trapping” a 67-year-old senior citizen in Palam Vihar by threatening to implicate him in a false rape case. The suspects were remanded to judicial custody after being produced before a local court, police said. 

When the demands were not met, a sexual assault complaint was lodged against him on June 18. (File photo)

According to the FIR filed at Palam Vihar police station on August 28, advocate Kuldeep Malik, along with two women identified as Asha Verma and Kanchan alias Kritika, allegedly befriended the victim through missed calls and casual conversations. Police said the women later visited his residence, where one of them initiated intimacy. Soon after, he began receiving extortion calls, demanding large sums of money with threats of a rape case if he refused to pay. 

When the demands were not met, a sexual assault complaint was lodged against him on June 18. The victim’s family contested the allegations, submitting call recordings and written complaints to both Gurugram police and the Haryana State Commission for Women. They alleged that the accused initially demanded ₹10 lakh and later negotiated a “settlement” for ₹6.5 lakh. 

Sandeep Kumar, Gurugram police spokesperson, confirmed the arrests. “The suspects were identified as Asha Verma, 47, of Delhi; Kanchan Kumari, 24, of Rohtak; and Kuldeep Singh, 40, of Bhiwani. They were arrested from different locations and sent to judicial custody after being produced in court,” he said. 

Renu Bhatia, chairperson of the Haryana State Commission for Women, said the commission was closely monitoring such cases. “We are taking cognisance of these cases seriously, as such gangs not only exploit senior citizens but also misuse laws meant to protect women,” she said. 

Deepika Narayan Bhardwaj, men’s rights activist and director of Ekam Nyaay Foundation, flagged a disturbing trend. “Honey trap gangs are now making senior citizen men their targets. Most people give in to these extortions because of shame, but in this case, the family decided to fight, and we extended full support,” she said. 

Police officials said investigations are underway to identify other members of the racket and to determine the scale of the gang’s operations. 

Activists pointed to systemic concerns. An RTI response accessed by HT revealed that between January 2020 and December 2024, Gurugram police registered 955 rape cases, of which 417 (43.6%) were related to false promises of marriage. Of these, 236 were later cancelled, but legal action was taken in only 96 cases. The figures, activists said, raise questions about deterrence and the chilling effect on genuine survivors of sexual assault.