2022 Cab driver murder: Gurgaon court awards life term to two, 14 yrs in jail to third

“…The accused are menace to the society and there is no reason to believe that they cannot be reformed or rehabilitated,” the court held.

The court sentenced key accused Vishal, a resident of Rewari in Haryana, and Rahul, a resident of Jaipur in Rajasthan to life imprisonment after holding them guilty under IPC Sections 302 (murder) and 34 (furtherance of common intention) with a Rs 50,000 fine each (three years rigourous imprisonment for default), 14 years under 397 (robbery with attempt to cause death) with a Rs 25,000 fine each (one year for default), 14 years under 392 (robbery), and 120B (criminal conspiracy) with a Rs 25,000 fine each (six months in default), and three years under Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) with a Rs 10,000 fine each (three months in default). Vishal received two additional terms for offences under the Arms Act with a Rs 10,000 fine (three months each in default).

All sentences are to run concurrently.

Another accused, Ravi Banjara, who destroyed the vehicle’s GPS in Jaipur, was awarded 14 years rigorous imprisonment after being held guilty of criminal conspiracy, robbery, criminal act with common intention and destruction of evidence.

The body of cab driver Arjun, 53, a resident of Mahipalpur in Delhi, was found near SPR Road under Badshahpur police station on February 20, 2022. Postmortem examination revealed that he was killed a day earlier, with a gunshot to the head.

Days later, Gurgaon police arrested Vishal, his live-in partner, and Rahul. During investigation, police said, it came to fore that Vishal and other members of his gang would flag down cabs, would shoot the driver and take the vehicle to Jaipur, where its parts were sold off.

In the court, the prosecution proved that Rahul and Vishal conspired to steal the vehicle for sale to scrap dealers. “Rahul pulled the hand brakes and Vishal immediately fired at the head of Arjun from behind due to which he succumbed to his injuries instantaneously,” the court noted in its verdict.

They then shifted the body to the rear seat and dumped it in a pit near an under-construction flyover on NH-48, before taking the vehicle to Jaipur.

The evidence included GPS tracking details, showing car’s route from Delhi to Mohana Reserve Forest, Jaipur, with stops at eateries. CCTV camera footage from Kherki Daula toll showed the vehicle crossing at 10:51pm on February 19. Forensic reports confirmed blood on the accused’s clothes and the car’s mat. The recovery of a country-made pistol and cartridge, based on disclosure statements, was validated scientifically.

Thirty-three witnesses testified, including Arjun’s grandson, who identified the body.

The judge praised the police for its probe. “Despite being a blind case, the police has been able to crack it based upon the technology, scientific evidence, proven disclosure statements, and the circumstantial evidence,” the judge observed.

Arjun worked as a driver for a Delhi Cantonment-based transporter and ferried staff of private airlines from the Delhi airport.