Delhi encounter: Gang ran extortion racket but spoke of revolution

Rajesh Kandela alias Rajesh Bharti, shot dead on Saturday, called his gang ‘Kranti’ and sought to establish it as a “vigilante group” to ensure a “crime-free society” (Tashi Tobgyal)

Rajesh Kandela alias Rajesh Bharti, shot dead on Saturday, called his gang ‘Kranti’ and sought to establish it as a “vigilante group” to ensure a “crime-free society” by — perhaps paradoxically — killing their rivals To spread fear among locals and gain supremacy over other gangs, he would upload videos on YouTube and Facebook. His main source of money, police said, was an extortion racket in Delhi and Haryana, that took money from bookies and businesses in exchange for protection.

From the lack of a signature style to the use of lonely roads, in the early days, Bharti kept a low profile. But the first brush with police was violent. Bharti and his associates had, on March 8, 2011, gathered at Vasant Kunj’s Rangpuri. A police party was waiting. When Bharti and his associates saw the officers, they opened fire. Bharti was arrested Afterwards, he took a more flamboyant approach. He would leave behind notes after killing men, and would brag about the crimes online. The theme of revenge, of kranti, was a constant The gang first claimed to be a vigilante group after they gunned down a 32-year-old businessman in Dwarka’s sector 22. They left behind a note that read: “We have drug peddlers, anti-nationals, corrupt doctors, gamblers, those with black money, and those who attack or rape women on our radar. If they don’t mend their ways, we will kill them using hi-tech weapons.” The note signed off with ‘Jai Hind, Jai Bharat’ and the line: “We want to correct injustices. If it’s war that is required, so be it.”

Police said new members would join the Bharti gang as they sought to project a glamorous image of a life in crime. “A few years ago, a 21-year-old sharpshooter of the Bharti gang was arrested for allegedly killing a man in Dwarka’s sector 23. The accused, Aman Khadkhadi alias Azaad, confessed he was inspired by Bollywood movies based on gangsters,” said a senior officer The then DCP southwest Surendra Kumar said, “They are all extortionists. They do not even know the meaning of kranti (revolution).”