City residents protested at the police headquarters Thursday, demanding a constable be sacked for allegedly allowing a criminal nabbed red-handed to escape.
But police said the criminal escaped, taking advantage of the large number of people present at the crime spot.
The residents calmed only after Kavi Nagar police station SHO assured a departmental action against erring constable Gyanendra Sirohi.
Resident Ajay Tyagi said victim Sunaina, a beautician, received a woman customer Thursday morning. As she was applying wax, customer Shakuntala phoned her male accomplices to strike as Sunaina's husband, a school teacher, had left for work.
Soon, two men barged in. One robber inserted a pistol barrel inside Sunaina's mouth while the other started ransacking the house. Sunaina somehow screamed and neighbours rushed in to catch the trio, handing them over to the police but one criminal escaped.