Anant Goenka, Executive Director of The Indian Express Group, narrated a “terrible experience” at Milan Airport in Italy where his mother’s handbag containing money and passport was stolen by a gang of three. Goenka noted the severe lack of security arrangements in the airport and praised the Indian authorities for prompt action in helping them.
Sharing the incident on X, Goenka said that such incidents are happening in the airport with a very high frequency, and police expressed their inability to combat the issue due to the extremely low number of manpower, along with the lack of CCTV at vital places.
Anant Goenka said that a few days ago, a gang of 3 persons targeted his family in Milan Airport in Italy, distracted them, and stole his mother’s handbag which had money and passport. When they approached the airport police, the police said that it was 4th such incident in the last 6 hours in that day.
Had a terrible experience inside Milan Airport few days ago. A gang of 3 targeted us, distracted and stole mom's handbag, with money and passport in it.
— Anant Goenka (@anantgoenka) June 29, 2024
Here's the shocking part:
1) Police at airport said 4 th such incident in 6 hours.
2) Police inspector told me "there are…
The police inspector told him, “there are only 3 of us, so nothing much we can do.” The police said that there is no CCTV around the area where passengers fill out VAT refund forms, the exact place where the handbag was stolen. As per the police, that area is not under CCTV coverage to protect “passenger privacy”, showing how the woke ideology of the West is helping criminals.
On the other hand, Anant Goenka praised the Indian consulate for their prompt action in the matter, calling them “beyond amazing”. He wrote, “They were prompt and very helpful in issuing an emergency temporary passport for travel.” They also told him that this was the 4th Emergency Passport they issued today due to such robbery.
Goenka added that in India, Immigration officers told them that there are several such cases this year coming from Spain and Italy. He thanked the Indian consulate in Milan for going out of their way to help them, and asked people who are holidaying to be careful.
Losing passports to robbery is a big problem for people travelling abroad. Thieves steal bags for valuables and generally don’t return passports and other documents even though they have no use for them. Such incidents are very common in Europe, where there are a high number of tourists. The local police are of generally no help in such cases, except recording the crime and issuing an acknowledgement which is needed to obtain an emergency passport.
When someone loses a passport abroad, they should file a complaint with the local police, and then approach the nearest Indian consulate or embassy with the police report. Indian officials are generally helpful in such cases and promptly issue emergency documents to continue the journey and return to India. However, it is very helpful if one keeps soft the copies of passport and visa on the phone or on the cloud, as this information is needed to issue the backup document, called an Emergency Certificate.
