A midnight dispute. ‘Bihari’ taunts. Then a delivery agent is killed by a cop

This is unlike the practice at local police stations where service pistols are issued to personnel only if they are on an operation, raid or patrol, and are to be handed back after duty.

A resident of Rohtak, Neeraj, who is in his 40s, joined the force as a constable in 2006. He was promoted to head constable while serving as a drill instructor at the Delhi Police Academy.

Part of the Delhi Police’s elite Special Cell since 2019, police said Neeraj, posted in the Southern Range team, helped arrest over a dozen gangsters and robbers over the last seven years.

Recounting one such case, officers said Neeraj was recently involved in arresting Karamveer alias Kaju from Rajasthan, an associate of the Rohit Godara and Jitender Gogi gangs and wanted by the National Investigation Agency in a hand grenade attack at two Gurgaon nightclubs.

He had also tipped-off police on several leads, which led to the arrests of associates of gangsters like Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, Neetu Dabodia, Ashok Pradhan, and Himanshu Bhau, they added.

A senior officer said Neeraj’s previous record remains clean. “He has been suspended and a separate inquiry has been initiated into the matter. The local police are investigating what actually went wrong. The incident is unfortunate, and the police’s sympathy is with the victim’s family,” the officer said.

The shooting

According to police, around 2 am on Sunday, Neeraj heard a noise across the road from his rented room in Rawata village.

He stepped out with his pistol and encountered the victim, Pandav Kumar, and his friend Krishna, sitting astride a motorcycle, and their other friends. The group had attended the birthday party of a friend’s two-year-old son and were setting off home.

Eyewitness Rupesh Kumar — whose son’s birthday they had celebrated — said guests were waiting for rides on the road and chatting. “A man, later identified as Neeraj, argued with us. He grew angrier when Pandav said he was from Bihar and opened fire.”

Kushal Pal Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka), had said on Sunday, “The bullet pierced Pandav’s chest and exited, hitting Krishna in the abdomen, who was sitting behind Pandav on the motorcycle. Both were rushed to hospital, where Pandav was declared dead.”

Krishna remains hospitalised but is stable. Local police plan to record his statement and are reviewing nearby CCTV footage.

Pandav was the only earning member in his family. His mother suffers from tuberculosis.

At the family’s home in Rawata village, Pandav’s father, Ganesh Singh (60), a labourer from Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district, said his son dropped out of school after Class 10 and took up odd jobs to support them.

Pandav’s elder sister, Gunjan, who is married, said, “He was the sole support for our family. When the protector becomes a predator, who can save us?”

His aunt, Gagan Devi, said Pandav and his friend Krishna were heading home after the party when the officer confronted them about standing on the road.

“When Pandav said he was from Bihar, the officer abused him. My nephew asked if being from Bihar was a crime, saying they earned their livelihood through hard work. That’s when the officer fired. One bullet pierced Pandav’s chest; another hit Krishna in the abdomen,” she alleged. “Who will take care of the family now?”