Lajpat Nagar shooting: Cops present at eatery when owner shot dead by 3 men

Meanwhile, investigation has revealed that two police personnel were present at the shop when the incident took place. Two more policemen were at a picket barely 10 metres from the crime scene.

The policemen at the shop were the personal staff of Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) M S Randhawa. He said the men deployed at the police picket have been suspended and a departmental inquiry has been initiated against them.

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Randhawa also claimed his staff were at the spot but were off-duty. “They were carrying their service revolvers, but could not use it as the eatery is located inside a congested and narrow lane. They were trying to sort out the issue by talking to two of the assailants when the third man opened fire,” said the DCP.

One of Vasudeo’s employees, Rahul, said the assailants initially began to argue with him over the bill. “The bill amount was Rs 1,085. The men first refused to pay and then asked for a discount. I requested them to pay their bill but they started to hurl abuses at me. They then tried to leave without paying,” he said.

Another employee said, “When they were stopped from leaving, an argument broke out between the group and the staff. That’s when Vasudeo intervened in the matter. The assailants kept asking for a discount. Vasudeo got angry and slapped one of them. They paid Rs 1,000 and left”.

He said an hour later, the three men returned in a white Maruti Swift and began to hurl abuses at Vasudeo. “At that time, two police personnel had come to the shop to get some food packed. They asked the men to calm down. Suddenly, one of the men whipped out his gun and shot four rounds. Two of the bullets hit Vasudeo,” said the employee. He added that the men fled from the spot after the shooting.

Randhawa said the two policemen, along with a team from the nearest police post, tried to give chase but the accused took advantage of the rain and non-functional street lights to escape. He added that the owner was taken to a hospital by his staff.

Meanwhile, police said none of the CCTV cameras in the neighbourhood had managed to record footage of the assailants, as the area was too dark.

However, a passer-by managed to note down a part of the car’s registration number. “Investigators have acquired a list from the transport department in Uttar Pradesh, as the car had a UP registration number, and are in the process of shortlisting Maruti Swift models,” said a senior police officer.