Two bikes used in Rachna Yadav murder; police say one still missing

The attackers arrived in Shalimar Bagh on separate motorcycles on Saturday morning. While one motorcycle, on which the shooter arrived, remains untraced, the second was used for escape and later found abandoned on Helipad Road in Rohini near Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), which connects Delhi to Haryana.

Investigations into the murder of 44-year-old Rachna Yadav, an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) worker and residents’ welfare association (RWA) member in Shalimar Bagh, have revealed that the two assailants used two motorcycles to execute and flee after the crime, senior police officers said on Monday.

One of the motorcycles had been reported stolen from the Netaji Subhash Place police station area in September last year (Representative photo)

The attackers arrived in Shalimar Bagh on separate motorcycles on Saturday morning. While one motorcycle, on which the shooter arrived, remains untraced, the second was used for escape and later found abandoned on Helipad Road in Rohini near Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), which connects Delhi to Haryana.

Investigators confirmed the two-motorcycle theory after scanning CCTV footage from the crime scene and surrounding routes. However, the identities of the killers remain unknown even 72 hours after Yadav, a key witness in her husband’s murder case, was shot dead near her residence.

“We ran the suspects’ footage through the facial recognition system. There were eight to ten possible matches, but none was conclusive,” said deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Bhisham Singh.

According to investigators, the motorcycle parked inside Shalimar Bagh was left in an area not covered by CCTV cameras. “We suspect a third person may have removed it. After the shooting, both assailants fled on the second motorcycle. The shooter got off in Rohini and disappeared, while the rider abandoned the bike on Helipad Road and took a shared auto to UER-II before heading towards Haryana. Our teams are tracking his movement there,” an officer said.

The abandoned motorcycle had been reported stolen from the Netaji Subhash Place police station area in September last year.

Police said Yadav was shot around 11 am when she stepped out of her house and had walked only a few steps before being intercepted. Eyewitnesses reported a brief scuffle, after which one assailant pulled out a pistol and shot her at close range. She was taken to a nearby hospital but was declared dead on arrival.

Investigators believe the assailants could be contract killers as they allegedly confirmed Yadav’s identity before shooting her.

Police said the murder may be linked to the killing of her husband, Vijender Yadav, who was shot dead in Bhalswa village in 2023 following a property dispute. Four accused in that case were arrested, while two, including the prime suspect, remain absconding.