Ex-lekhpal, family held at gunpoint in Uttar Pradesh home; jewellery, cash worth over ₹50 lakh robbed

Armed robbers broke into the house of a retired revenue officer in Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur, held his family hostage at gunpoint and fled with jewelery and cash worth ₹ 50 lakh in about 25 minutes, police said on Tuesday (January 6, 2026).

According to police, four masked men came home on two motorcycles around 7.30 pm on Monday, January 5, 2026, and knocked on the door of 70-year-old Balendra Singh’s house under AIIMS police station limits near Rajhi Maurya Chauraha.

As soon as Mr Singh opened the door, one of the attackers allegedly put a gun to his temple and forced him inside, while others followed, brandishing their firearms.

Police said Mr Singh was hit in the head with the butt of a gun and injured when he tried to raise the alarm.

They added that the robbers then gathered the family members – Mr Singh’s wife Usha, daughter-in-law Kalpana and sister-in-law Purnima – and forced them to remove their gold ornaments before locking them in a room.

The attackers also threatened Mr. Singh’s two grandchildren by pointing a gun at their heads and demanded the keys to the lockers, police said, adding that the women handed over the keys fearing for the children’s safety.

They said Mr. Singh’s blind younger brother, Tejbahadur Singh, who was resting on the veranda, was unharmed.

An FIR has been registered against unidentified persons and police teams are scanning CCTV footage from the area to identify the suspects, who are believed to be in their early 20s.

Superintendent of Police (City) Abhinav Tyagi said raids were continuing and expressed confidence that the case would be solved soon.