In a suspected case of gang rivalry, four persons, including a minor and two passers-by, were killed in north Delhi’s Burari on Monday morning in full public view. Also, six persons were injured in the incident, the police said.
The deceased have been identified as Mukul alias Sunny (16) a resident of Narela’s Nangal Thakran, Sangeeta Sharma (37) a resident of Sant Nagar, another passer-by Raj Kumar, a resident of Burari, and the fourth is suspected to be Sanjeet, a member of Jitender Gogi gang.
The injured have been identified as Hemant alias Himanshu, Jitender alias Kala, Surinder alias Bitta, three locals Santosh, Vashishth Rai and Rajan.
The incident is suspected to be a fallout of gang rivalry between Jitender Gogi and Tillu Tajpur gangs, the police said.
Mukul, Himanshu, Jitender and Surinder are said to be distantly related to Tillu Tajpur, they added.
A 58-year-old woman who witnessed the incident said, four persons came out of the gym and went inside their parked SUV when another SUV came, hit the first car and started firing indiscriminately.
“There were at least five persons in the other SUV wearing masks and caps. They started firing. A boy in yellow t-shirt [Mukul] ran to the left side and another in a blue shirt [occupants of parked SUV] ran to the right. The two persons sitting in the parked car started driving on the wrong side,” she said.
Next, the other SUV started chasing Mukul.
Meanwhile, the other accused ran after the man in blue t-shirt who was later identified as Surinder alias Bitta. He was shot in the leg but managed to escape.
Meanwhile, two accused ran behind the SUV which had gone to the wrong side, firing continuously.
Sangeeta who was waiting for an autorickshaw to reach her workplace was shot at during the chase. All the accused are then suspected to have regrouped and fled the spot.
Meanwhile, Hemant and Jitender who drove to the wrong side took a left turn to a narrow street and came to a halt in Sant Nagar’s A2 block’s market, about a km away from where they started.
“The car hit two motorcycles and a bicycle before jumping to a fleet of steps leading to an eatery,” said an eyewitness. Raj Kumar, a local, who got injured in the process, later succumbed to his injuries, the police said, adding that Rajan, who was on a bike, is said to be critical.
In the CCTV footage captured near the shop where the car stopped, Hemant can be seen coming out of the car and helping Jitender come out.
They were later taken to a hospital where Jitender is undergoing treatment.
Two more locals, Vashishth and Santosh, sustained injuries in the process and are undergoing treatment.
‘Killed by own gang’
A police officer privy to the case said that Sanjeet is suspected to have been killed by the bullet of his own gang members.
“When they fired at Mukul, they were one behind the other. It appears that Sanjeet got shot during the firing. He was then pushed into the car and later left near MAX Hospital as he was dead. The others had fled the spot,” he said.
Over 30 rounds were fired and empty cartridges of .32mm, 9mm and .76mm were found at the spot, said sources.
The car used by Mukul and three others was bulletproof and it belonged to Mukul’s uncle Pawan.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) P.S. Kushwah said that it is unclear whether firing took place from both sides.
Mukul’s family members were pursuing the murder case of his maternal uncle Raju alias Deepak who shot dead allegedly by Gogi and his associates in 2015. This may be a reason behind the incident, said Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) M.M. Oberoi.
Another trigger could be an attempt to murder of an undertrial, Dinesh, member of Jitender Gogi gang, who was shot at by a minor, a member of Tillu Tajpur gang at Tis Hazari courts in May, said sources.