2 wanted men held after separate shootouts in SE Delhi

Police said Singh tried to flee after being stopped but opened fire at the STF team, prompting them to retaliate.

Two men wanted in separate criminal cases were arrested following encounters with the special task force (STF) of the southeast district police over the weekend, officers said on Monday. Both suspects sustained bullet injuries in their legs during the exchanges of fire, police added.

2 wanted men held after separate shootouts in SE Delhi

In the first case, 23-year-old Himanshu Singh, a resident of Dakshinpuri, was arrested late Saturday night near Badarpur Park in south Delhi after a brief shootout, police said. Singh, wanted in an armed robbery case, was on his way to commit another crime when the STF intercepted him, they added. “Singh and his associate Kaushal had robbed cash from a food delivery boy at gunpoint in Pul Prahladpur area on October 22. A video of the robbery had surfaced on social media. While Kaushal was arrested two days later, Singh was absconding,” said Hemant Tiwari, deputy commissioner of police (southeast).

Tiwari said Singh was earlier involved in three criminal cases, including kidnapping, robbery and snatching, and had been released on bail in June this year. Police said Singh tried to flee after being stopped but opened fire at the STF team, prompting them to retaliate. He was hit in the leg and later apprehended. A pistol and live cartridges were recovered from his possession, officers added.

In the second incident, which took place on Sunday night, the STF arrested 28-year-old Tejas Bharat following an exchange of fire near Astha Kunj Park in Nehru Place. Bharat, wanted in connection with a firing incident at Taimoor Nagar on Diwali night, “was injured in his leg in the encounter, while one of his bullets hit the bulletproof vest of a head constable,” DCP Tiwari said.

Police said Bharat, who was targeting rival gang members, is under treatment and will be questioned once fit. Investigations are ongoing to trace their associates and recover more weapons.