Two men open fire in crowded Bhogal, two bystanders injured

Two men on a motorcycle on Wednesday opened fire in crowded Bhogal market in south Delhi, allegedly with an intent to kill their rival, and ended up injuring two bystanders, who are currently battling for their lives at a government hospital, police said

Two men on a motorcycle on Wednesday opened fire in crowded Bhogal market in south Delhi, allegedly with an intent to kill their rival, and ended up injuring two bystanders, who are currently battling for their lives at a government hospital, police said.

Two men open fire in crowded Bhogal, two bystanders injured

The assailants’ target, a man who was arrested for their friend’s murder in 2020 and is out on bail since December, escaped unhurt, police said.

The two men have been identified as Dilawar and Aman alias Damage by their target, Nikhil Pal,24. Pal along with his associates had allegedly killed the duo’s friend and neighbour Chinku in Jangpura area in 2020, police said.

Deputy commissioner of police (south-east) Esha Pandey said at 1.40pm on Wednesday, the Hazrat Nizamuddin police station received a call alerting them about a firing incident in Bhogal. A police team rushed to the spot and met Pal, who claimed that two men had fired at him.

“The shooters, however, missed Pal and two bystanders -- Neeraj,24, and Mohammad Gulzar,18 -- were injured. Both of them were admitted to AIIMS Trauma Centre. A case of attempt to murder with common intention has been registered and investigation is on,” said DCP Pandey.

The entire incident was captured by CCTV cameras, police said, adding that multiple teams of the south-east district police are scanning the footage and have activated their intelligence network to nab the suspects.

Pal said he had gone to a private bank in Bhogal to deposit ₹28,000 in his account. As the cash deposit machine was not working, Pal came out and went to a tea stall across the road. He ordered a cup of tea and was waiting with other customers, when two men arrived on a motorcycle, aimed at him and opened fire, said Pal.

“They fired three bullets at me. The first bullet hit Gulzar in the back. He works as a labourer at a nearby tent house. The second buller hit auto-rickshaw driver, Neeraj, in the back. The third bullet missed everyone. A commotion broke out immediately and people, including me, ran to save our lives,” said Pal.

Onlookers told police that after the shooting, the men fled on their bike, waving their firearms in the air to deter locals from trying to stop them.

Pal said he identified the two attackers as neighbours and friends of Chinku, who was murdered in 2020. He alleged that the two may have been hired by Chinku’s family to kill him in revenge.

“During a court hearing in November last year, while I was still in judicial custody, Chinku’s sister had threatened to get me killed if I was released from jail. I came out on bail in December,” he said.

The police said they were probing the case from all possible angles.