North East Delhi riots: Supplier of pistol brandished at cop arrested

Police said the accused has been involved in gunrunning for over a decade and supplied hundreds of illegal firearms and ammunition to gangsters and criminals in NCR

New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Friday said they arrested a 34-year-old gunrunner a day earlier for allegedly supplying the pistol, which was brandished at a policeman during the 2020 riots in the city’s northeast. Shahrukh Pathan’s video brandishing the gun went viral on the internet before his arrest.

Shahrukh Pathan’s video brandishing the gun went viral on the internet before his arrest. (Delhi Police)

Deputy police commissioner (special cell) Jasmeet Singh said a team led by inspectors Shiv Kumar and Jitender Mawi caught Babu Wasim, the alleged gunrunner, from Delhi’s Tahirpur around 6.30 pm on Thursday. He added Wasim, who is from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, has been involved in gunrunning for over a decade.

Singh said Wasim supplied hundreds of illegal firearms and ammunition to gangsters and criminals in the National Capital Region (NCR). He added he was also a key supplier of arms and ammunition to the Chhenu Pehlwan gang. “A semi-automatic pistol and five cartridges were recovered from Wasim. He was wanted in the riot cases for over two years and was declared a proclaimed offender in the case in which Pathan was arrested and charge sheeted. Wasim supplied the pistol that Pathan aimed at a Delhi Police head constable [Deepak Dahiya] during the riots on February 24, 2020,” said Singh.

Pathan, a resident of Delhi’s Karawal Nagar, was arrested in March 2020 from Uttar Pradesh’s Shamli and charged in June that year. Pathan allegedly aimed the pistol at Dahiya “with an intention to kill him”, police told a court. In December, the court framed charges against Pathan and four others.

“Wasim has admitted to having supplied the pistol seen in viral video to Pathan before the riots in Delhi. He absconded after the video went viral to escape arrest,” said Singh.

Police said Wasim has told them he supplied over 250 firearms to criminals and arms traffickers in Delhi and NCR while being on the run. They added he was also involved in contract killings, murder, and the attempt to murder. A case related to the contract killing of one Veenu Pandit is pending against him in Geeta Colony police station.

Police said Wasim and his associates allegedly killed Pandit at the behest of his business partners and were paid ₹17 lakh for it in 2016. They added Wasim’s questioning was on to ascertain his linkages with arms trafficking, gangsters, and criminals in Delhi and NCR. “His role in supplying firearms to rioters during North East Delhi riots is also being probed,” said Singh.