MEERUT, May 25 -- In a broad daylight incident, a group of six men returning from Saudi Arabia were abducted by armed criminals posing as policemen, on the Delhi-Lucknow Highway near the Purana Tola toll plaza in Moradabad district on Friday, informed police officials on Saturday. The officials informed that acting on specific intelligence that the victims were smuggling gold concealed in their stomachs, the accused executed the abduction. The incident set off a police pursuit and a subsequent shootout, which ultimately resulted in the safe rescue of the victims. The victims - Naved, Shane Alam, Mutallavi, Zahid, and Zulfekar - all residents of Tanda in Rampur district, were travelling from Delhi Airport to their hometown. Zulfekar, who was driving the car, had earlier dropped off another family at the airport and then was giving a ride to the victims when the incident took place, victims informed police during an investigation. As per the reports, at around 5pm, two vehicles intercepted their car near the Mainather Mudha Pandey border, posing as part of police checking. One of the assailants wore a police uniform, and an inspector's cap was prominently displayed on the dashboard. Claiming to be conducting a security check, the impostors began searching the vehicle and quickly overpowered the group at gunpoint. The victims were then forcibly shifted into the assailants' vehicle and taken along a forested route to a secluded farmhouse in the Raunda area. There, the criminals allegedly began making preparations to surgically extract the suspected gold hidden in the victims' stomachs. However, one of the hostages managed to escape and raised an alarm. Local villagers, upon hearing the commotion, rushed to the spot and alerted the police. Acting swiftly, police teams from Mundha Pandey, Katghar, and the Special Operations Group (SOG) launched a coordinated operation and cordoned off the area. During the operation, a gunfight ensued, following which two accused - Raza, a resident of Kashipur, and Taufiq, from Moradabad - were shot in the leg and apprehended. They were admitted to the district hospital for treatment. SP City Kumar Ranvijay Singh confirmed that all six hostages were safely rescued and are now out of danger. Police have launched a manhunt to nab the remaining members of the gang, believed to number more than four. Initial investigations indicate that the group may have acted on prior intelligence about the victims' travel plans and suspected involvement in gold smuggling. Authorities are now probing deeper into the network behind the crime, exploring the possibility that the accused had access to inside information from the airport or even international sources. SP Singh said, "The entire incident is being investigated in detail. Our teams are working to nab other accused involved in the crime. Both the cars used by them have been seized. So far, we have not reached to any conclusions regarding gold smuggling."...