Around 4 am Tuesday, residents of Block C-3 in Vasant Kunj woke up to a rude shock — a broken lock of a house in the locality and an alleged theft. By Tuesday evening, footage from around four CCTVs showed two men walking with a crowbar, attempting to break into at least 10 homes, claimed RWA president Ashok Srivastava. The block is located opposite Vasant Kunj (North) police station. DCP (South West) Devender Arya said, “One house was burgled and in the footage we can see two men. A case under sections 457 (lurking, house-trespass or house-breaking by night) and 380 (theft) of the IPC has been registered.” Police denied claims that the accused attempted to break into other homes. Srivastava told The Indian Express, “The matter came to light when a resident who returned home around 4 am saw that the main door of the neighbour’s house, who are not in town, was broken. She raised an alarm.” Residents of Block C-3 have submitted a complaint to the SHO, Vasant Kunj (North), which stated that “multiple burglaries and attempts to break in were made between 1.30 am and 4 am.” At least eight addresses have been mentioned in the letter. The letter also said, “This is a grave situation, even more so because our block is right opposite your police station.” Anuj Bishnoi (44), a resident of the block, said that “CCTV footage shows the two men attempting to break open the lock using a crowbar. It’s quite brazen.” Residents claimed that in at least two cases, the accused allegedly rang the doorbells to check if there was anyone at home. Police said they are investigating the claim. As per CCTV footage shared by residents, two men can be seen walking around the colony, peeking into homes and attempting to break locks; while one footage shows the two men walking inside one house. A police officer said, “So far, it seems nothing is missing from the house they broke into.” Residents said they have requested the SHO to ask a beat constable to patrol the colony, which has 198 homes, with a siren.
