Chor choree se gaya, kya hera pheri se bhi?

Whoa! Former bandits are being recruited to give guided tours to tourists in an effort to boost visitors to a crime-infested area of India. Here is the story.

Tourism chiefs in Rajasthan believe the chance to experience the legends of notorious criminals will draw in thousands of tourists, reports the Daily Telegraph

While banditry is widespread in India, many criminals are heroes to the poor. Famous names include Veraappen, whose private army murdered 180 people over 20 years, but was protected by villagers.

Phoolan Devi, known as the "Bandit Queen" who murdered many high caste Indians was so popular that she was elected as a member of parliament after her release from jail, and her story was turned into a hit film.

Under the Rajasthan scheme, recently surrendered bandits, or dacoits, will entertain visitors under the watchful eye of government officials.

They will be taken to bandit-infested areas in the Chamba Valley, to meet gangsters and follow a "Dacoit Trail" to see where they lived, and the scenes of their worst crimes.

"The very idea of having the morning cuppa with a bandit on the banks of the Chamal will appeal to tourists," said one travel industry source.

The Chambal Valley will not disappoint those searching for "true-life crime'. The area remains gripped by bandit violence, and there are regular shoot-outs between gang members and police.

Last month, one of the area's most feared bandits, Deep Chand, alias Nadia, was shot-dead in a gun fight with police.


the question is, why in the hell Deep Chand sahab had an alias of Nadia, seems like a major case of identity crisis to me