City gangster shot dead by cops in Rohini apartment

Fajja was being escorted from Mandoli Jail to GTB Hospital when several armed men allegedly fired at the police to free him.

The Delhi police special cell gunned down gangster Kuldeep Mann alias Fajja in an alleged encounter at a flat in an apartment building in outer Delhi’s Rohini in the early hours of Sunday, less than 72 hours after he escaped from custody following a shootout at GTB Hospital.

Pramod Kushwah, deputy commissioner of police (special cell), said at least eight rounds were fired by Fajja while the cops responded by firing around 10 bullets. (Getty images | Representational image)

Police arrested the flat owner, Yogender Dahiya, and an alleged criminal, Bhupinder Mann alias Bhuttan, for harbouring Fajja who was allegedly a close associate of jailed gangster Jitender Gogi.

Pramod Kushwah, deputy commissioner of police (special cell), said at least eight rounds were fired by Fajja while the cops responded by firing around 10 bullets. “Two of our policemen were saved by their bulletproof vests,” Kushwah said about the impact on his officers.

Police said the autopsy report would determine how many times Fajja was hit but it appeared that bullet wounds to the stomach killed him.

Fajja, whose 11 past criminal cases included five murders and three robberies, was being escorted by a police team from Mandoli Jail to GTB Hospital for treatment on Thursday afternoon when several armed men allegedly fired at the police to free him. The police fought back, shooting dead one assailant and injuring another.

Since then, several police teams, including those from the special cell, were hunting for Fajja.

Kushwah said that on Saturday, his team learnt that Fajja was hiding somewhere in Rohini. Police worked on inputs to arrest Bhupinder Mann around 9.30pm on Saturday.

Bhupinder allegedly revealed to police that Fajja was hiding in Rohini Sector 14, in a two-bedroom flat on the ground floor of Tulsi Apartments, a gated residential society consisting of 176 flats.

By around 1.30am, a police team arrived at the apartment complex.

“The three security guards on duty later told us that they showed their identity cards to the police who took over their security cabin and confiscated their mobile phones. The residents were asked to stay inside their houses and switch off their lights. No one dared to come down,” said Rajesh Gupta, joint secretary of the apartment’s management committee.

While the security guards were not available for a comment, police said their phones were not confiscated.

Kushwah said around 1.45am when the cops tried to enter the flat -- located very close to the guards’ room -- Fajja opened fire. Over the next few minutes, a resident who did not wish to be identified, said firing sounds kept emerging.

“There was also a lot of screaming from inside the flat. We didn’t know what exactly was happening, but we didn’t come out,” said the resident.

The police said there were two persons inside the flat -- Fajja and the owner Dahiya. Dahiya was also found with a gun -- an offence for which he has been booked under the Arms Act -- but he did not fire any shots, police said.

Fajja was taken to Dr BSA Hospital but he succumbed to his injuries.

His brother, Lalit Mann, later in the day, accused police of killing him in cold blood. “This was a clear case of murder. There was no firing from the inside by my brother. It were only the police who fired. The encounter scene and the circumstances of his death must be investigated impartially,” said Lalit.

A police officer, who didn’t want to be identified, said the encounter would see a magisterial inquiry anyway. “The apartment is also covered by lots of CCTV cameras,” said the officer.

Neighbours said the flat in which the alleged encounter happened was purchased in the 1990s by a man who passed away a few years ago. “The family now lives somewhere in Prashant Vihar and the owner’s son sometimes comes down to check the flat,” said Gupta.

According to police, Dahiya runs a gymnasium in Rohini. While he is accused of intentionally harbouring Fajja, police are investigating his background.

On Fajja’s escape, police said it was executed to help revive Gogi’s gang. “We also have inputs that the gang run by Kala Jathedi played an important role in the escape,” said an investigator.