Haryana scrap dealer returns jewels worth Rs 15 lakh to owners

In a world crowded with grim headlines, a small warehouse in Ballabhgarh, Haryana has offered a reminder that integrity still shines.

Rummaging through a pile of scrap he had bought six months earlier, scrap dealer Haji Akhtar Khan stumbled upon a bundle wrapped in paper. Inside was 100 grams of gold jewellery — worth around Rs 15 lakh.

He did not hesitate. Khan went straight to the police so the treasure could find its way back to its rightful owners.

The gold belonged to LIC agent Ashok Sharma and his family, who had unknowingly thrown it away during a Diwali clean-up.

According to Ballabhgarh assistant commissioner of police Jitesh Malhotra, the Sharmas had tucked the jewellery inside a sack of household scrap before leaving for the Kumbh Mela in January last year, fearing theft in their absence. Months later, in a routine decluttering exercise, they sold the scrap — completely forgetting that their gold was hidden inside.

By the time they realised their mistake, it felt like a crushing blow.

Khan, who runs a scrap warehouse near Faridabad, recalled that the family had approached him about two months after selling the junk. "I told them to look for it in the godown. Had they come soon after selling it, we could have checked the camera. But by then too much time had passed, so we couldn't find anything," Khan said.

The search went nowhere. The family returned home resigned to their loss. Then, on Wednesday, fate intervened.

"I was checking some scrap and found something wrapped in a sheet of paper. I thought it could be their gold and no one must have taken it thinking it is brass. I had it checked… The goldsmith said it was 100 per cent gold, 22 carats," Khan said.

What followed was simple — and extraordinary. Instead of keeping quiet, he approached the police and handed over the jewellery.

ACP Malhotra said the list of items earlier submitted by Sharma matched the recovered pieces exactly, and the gold was returned.

For Sharma, the moment was overwhelming. Describing Khan as a living example of honesty, he told PTI Videos, "We had suffered a huge loss during Diwali. We had accidentally lost 10 tolas of our gold to a junk dealer. Haji Akhtar Khan sahib has done an honest job. He came to the ACP's office and gave the gold. He called us and informed us that our belongings have been found. I thank him from the bottom of my heart. May God give him a long life."

Khan’s quiet act has since made him a local hero and a social media sensation. But for him, it was never about fame — only about doing what was right. And sometimes, that is enough to restore more than just gold.

With PTI inputs