Five members of the notorious 'Baheliya' gang were arrested and cash worth Rs 6 lakh was seized from their possession following an encounter with the Noida police Thursday, officials said. The gang, which has been involved in a number of robberies in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, was busted at around 1.30 am near the Cambridge School in Sector 27, a senior official said.

Acting on a tip-off that the gang members would be coming to Noida for a major robbery, the police were on an alert and during checking, the SHO of Sector 20 police station, Manoj Kumar Pant, and his team intercepted the accused persons in a vehicle. "When gestured to stop for enquiry, the men inside the vehicle opened fire on the police team. An encounter ensued between the two sides, after which the gang members were held," Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Pal Sharma said.

Those arrested were identified as Shyam Singh, Kalyan Singh (both brothers), Rishipal, Parveen - all from Amroha, and Satte, who belongs to Bijnor. Five pistols, 20 bullets, cash worth Rs 6 lakh and a gold chain were seized from their possession while their car was impounded, he said. The accused persons belong to the 'Baheliya' community and have no fixed base. They would set up small tents along the roadside and called them 'desi davakhanas', Sharma said.