Ex-JD(U) leader Raju Singh sent to police custody

Raju Singh, who was hosting the party at a south Delhi farmhouse owned by his mother, allegedly fired two to three shots and one of which hit Archana Gupta, an architect who lived in Gautam Nagar.

india Updated: Jan 03, 2019 17:05 IST

New Delhi, India - Jan. 3, 2019: Vikas (C), husband of Archana who was shot by former JD(U) MLA Raju Singh during celebratory firing on New Year’s Eve succumbed to her injuries three days after battling for life, at AIIMS Mortuary, in New Delhi, India, on Thursday, January 3, 2019. Archana was shot in the head at a south Delhi farmhouse during the firing. (Photo by Burhaan Kinu/ Hindustan Times)(Burhaan Kinu/HT PHOTO)

Former Janata Dal(United) leader Raju Singh, who was arrested for allegedly shooting a woman during New Year’s celebrations at a farmhouse in Delhi, was sent to police custody for seven days.

Singh, who was hosting the party at a south Delhi farmhouse owned by his mother, allegedly fired two to three shots and one of which hit Archana Gupta, an architect who lived in Gautam Nagar. Gupta, who was on life support, later died during treatment at Fortis Flt Lt Rajan Dhall Hospital in Vasant Kunj.

“He had been booked for attempting a murder under IPC (Indian Penal Code) 307. We will now change it to section 302 and he will be charged for murder,” said a senior police officer.

Delhi Police detained Singh and his bodyguard on Wednesday near Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. Police also recovered two rifles and at least 800 live bullets from Singh’s farmhouse in Fatehpur Beri, where the shooting took place on December 31, during a search.

The JD(U) has said Singh, who has five other police cases registered against him, had left the party in 2014.

IK Gupta, Archana’s father-in-law, said the family suspects no foul play in the case.

“If Raju Singh’s intentions were bad why would my son Vikas go to attend the party? We have visited Singh’s parties earlier also and the family is known to us. Police are doing their job,” he said.

Pradeep Gupta, her cousin, said they got to know about the arrest of the two men through the media.

“The family members are depressed. Her husband is not in a state to make a remark. We will issue a statement later,” he said.

First Published: Jan 03, 2019 17:05 IST