A wanted gangster, who had been on the run since 2014, has been arrested along with his accomplice, the police said on Tuesday.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Manishi Chandra said the accused, Ashok Pradhan (36), carrying a reward of ₹5lakh on his arrest. His accompliceArun Baba was carrying a reward of ₹1 lakh on his arrest.
The arrests were made with the help of technical and manual surveillance. “On January 31, our team received a tip-off that Pradhan and Baba were expected to travel towards Millennium Park, Outer Ring Road, for some purpose. Accordingly, we dispatched a team, which managed to nab the accused, who were travelling in a car at that time,” Mr. Chandra said. Firearms loaded with live cartridges were recovered from them, he added.
The duo was planning to eliminate rivals — Neeraj Bawana and Naveen Bali — during their upcoming court appearances.
Pradhan and his gang have a rivalry with Bawana, who is currently lodged in jail. He has been the chief executor of several gang-wars in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, claiming over a dozen lives, Mr. Chandra said.
“After the implementation of COVID-19 protocols, physical appearances of under trial prisoners in courts had been stopped. The accused were waiting for its resumption, which has just begun.”
During preliminary interrogation, Pradhan disclosed that in 2018, he along with his gang members had attacked a prominent businessman in Jhansi under a contract killing deal. However, the businessman survived but his driver was killed. In October 2020, he had made an extortion call to a municipal councilor in Bahadurgarh to pay ₹50 lakh ransom. However, these claims are being verified, the DCP said.
Pradhan was on the run since 2014 after jumping parole and is wanted in seven cases, including that of murder and robbery in Delhi and Haryana. Arun is wanted in three cases, including murder and attempt to murder.
