Gangsters stab rival 20 times at OPD in Delhi’s Tihar, 2 booked
The victim was inside the OPD in Tihar Prison Complex when the two inmates managed to get inside and stabbed him with knives.
A 39-year-old gangster incarcerated at Tihar jail was stabbed 20 times by two members of a rival faction at the outpatient department (OPD) room in the prison complex, police officers aware of the incident said on Thursday, adding that the victim is currently undergoing treatment at Deen Dayal Upadhyay hospital, where his condition is said to be serious but stable.
Police identified the victim as Hitesh Bajitpuriya, a murder convict who has been in jail since 2019 and was associated with deceased gangster Neetu Dabhodiya. His assailants were identified as Gaurav Lohra and Gurinder Singh, associated with the Neeraj Bawana gang.
Deputy commissioner of police (west) Vichitra Veer said following the attack, Lohra and Singh have been booked on attempt to murder charges.
“The two accused, who attacked Hitesh, are in jail for their involvement in murder and attempt to murder. They have now been booked in a fresh case of attempted murder for attacking Bajitpuriya,” the DCP said.
A jail official said the incident took place on Wednesday afternoon at the OPD room in Tihar, where Bajitpuriya was taken for a routine check-up.
The Delhi Prisons have a small hospital in jail no. 3 where patients are taken for checkup and treatment.
“Bajitpuriya was inside the OPD when the two assailants managed to get inside and stabbed him with knives and handmade blades carved out of metal strips. The victim had an old rivalry with the two accused as they belonged to rival gangs. We found that Bajitpuriya was not accompanied by an officer when the two accused attacked him. A Quick Response Team (QRT) stationed outside the hospital intervened after hearing the victim’s screams and removed the two convicts from the OPD,” said the official, requesting anonymity.
A Delhi prisons spokesperson, however, denied allegations that Bajitpuriya was not accompanied by an officer to the OPD. “There were jail officers inside. After we called the police, the accused were booked for assaulting Bajatpuriya,” the spokesperson said.
A second jail official said that Bajitpuriya, and Lohra and Singh were old rivals, and had fought in jail number 13 around two years ago, following which Bajitpuriya was shifted to jail number 8, while the other two were shifted to jail number 3.
Bajitpuriya’s stabbing comes a year after gangster Sunil Baliyan alias Tillu Tajpuriya was stabbed nearly 150 times by four fellow inmates of the same high-security ward of Tihar. According to investigators, the four assailants — members of Tajpuria’s deceased rival Joginder Gogi’s gang, who used improvised shanks in the attack — received instructions for the murder over the phone.