Two women gunned down in south Delhi's RK Puram, 3 suspects arrested

Two sisters were shot dead in Delhi, allegedly trying to protect their brother from a group of men in a monetary dispute.

Two sisters were allegedly shot dead in front of their family and neighbours near south Delhi’s RK Puram in the early hours of Sunday, the Delhi Police said, adding that the deceased were trying to save their brother from a group of men who had come to attack him over a monetary dispute.

Family members of the deceased at Ambedkar Basti in RK Puram in New Delhi on Sunday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

Police identified the deceased as Pinky, 30, and Jyoti, 29 — two of six siblings. While Pinky lived with her husband and two children in Munirka, Jyoti was estranged from her husband and lived with her three children and two brothers, Lalit and Lala, in Ambedkar Basti.

Deputy commissioner of police (southwest) Manoj C said three suspects — Arjun alias Anna, Dev, and Michael have been arrested, while three other assailants have been identified. He said Arjun fired the shots that killed the two women.

“We are still determining how many suspects were involved. By some estimates, there were about 10 of them,” said the DCP.

The LG’s office did not respond to the allegations, but the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused Kejriwal of playing politics over the murders.

The murders allegedly took place due to a monetary transaction two months ago. “Lalit had lent ₹10,000 to Dev. He had been asking Dev to return the money,” said the DCP.

According to the DCP, Lalit had abused Dev for not paying up. “Dev and some of his friends decided to take revenge,” the DCP said.

Around 3.20am on Sunday, 8-10 men including Dev, armed with rods and sticks, landed outside the house. The family alleged that Jyoti first called the police but there was no response, an allegation the police refuted. Police said that there was no PCR call until 4.23am. “It appears that the calls were not made to a PCR, but to a policeman. We are investigating,” said the DCP.

The attackers left in 10 minutes only to return around 4am, almost double in strength and carrying firearms. “When they tried to forcibly take Lalit away, Pinky and Jyoti shielded him,” said Preeti, a neighbour.

Within seconds, the situation escalated, with Arjun threatening to shoot whoever came in the way. The family said the first bullet grazed past Lalit. Eyewitnesses said more bullets were fired, two of which hit the sisters. Police said they are still verifying the number of shots fired.

Eyewitnesses said the attackers managed to escape through multiple lanes, after which the injured were taken to the hospital, where they were declared dead. A case of murder under the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act was registered at RK Puram police station, said the DCP.

Hours after the murders, Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi, “The people of Delhi have started feeling very unsafe. The people who have to handle the law and order of Delhi, instead of fixing the law and order, they are conspiring to capture the entire Delhi government. Today, if Delhi’s law and order was under AAP government instead of LG, then Delhi would have been safest.”

AAP Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh said, “The responsibility (for law and order) lies with the central government and LG but they have no time left to look after law and order as they remain busy fighting with the Delhi government.”

BJP MP from New Delhi and minister of state for external affairs Meenakshi Lekhi said, “The unfortunate event that has occurred in RK Puram is due to mutual animosity.”

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP spokesperson Harish Khurana said, “How many times did he (Kejriwal) meet with the Delhi Police commissioner or with the LG on the issue of law-and-order of the city? How many times has he held meetings with MPs on this issue? Only playing politics is his task.”

“Since the police were able to speak to Lalit soon after the crime, Dev’s identity was ascertained. A case of murder under the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act was registered at RK Puram police station,” said the DCP.

Arjun and Michael were not into any organised work, said the DCP, adding that the family of the victims alleged that Arjun operated a satta racket. “While we are investigating Arjun’s past. So far, we have not found his involvement in any case,” added the DCP.

Lalit and Lala work as a driver and housekeeping staff, respectively Lalit was booked in a robbery case in 2010 and was a member of a satta racket — both charges denied by his wife Anita.