‘We thought they were crackers’: Locals recall terrifying night

It was a usual night for residents of Block A in Sushant Lok Phase-I, Sector 28, on Thursday, with some residents out for their post-dinner walk

It was a usual night for residents of Block A in Sushant Lok Phase-I, Sector 28, on Thursday, with some residents out for their post-dinner walk.

Police deployment seen at the incident spot on Friday. (Parveen Kumar/HT)

Their peace was disturbed when firing broke out outside a three-storey house, followed by the arrival of at least three to four police vehicles carrying armed personnel.

Residents on the street rushed indoors and locked their doors. By then, the narrow lane was filled with bloodstains and at least 60 empty bullet shells. Vehicles belonging to the shooters and the police, riddled with bullet marks, blocked one end of the lane. The gates and glass panes of the businessman’s house and a neighbouring house had multiple bullet holes.

One of the eyewitnesses said that she had just finished dinner when she heard loud noises.

“I assumed someone was bursting crackers. But my minor son told me they were gunshots,” she said.

The woman said she stepped onto her balcony and saw several armed men opening fire with pistols. She said the last thing she saw was policemen carrying a man’s body and loading it into a police vehicle.

“After that, I started shivering and rushed inside. I came out only after about 30 to 40 minutes,” she added.

Another resident said he heard at least 24 to 25 rounds of firing in quick succession.

“There was a brief pause of a few seconds. Then a second round of firing took place between the police and the criminals,” he said.

“This time, it lasted only a few seconds and we heard five to six rounds being fired,” he added.

“We kept peeping from our balcony while crouching down to see what was happening outside. Armed policemen were moving around everywhere,” he said.

“On most days, several residents go out for a walk at that time. The police had shut all the entry and exit gates of the locality. I won’t be able to forget this incident for years,” he added.

A third eyewitness said that soon after the encounter ended, police cordoned off the area.

“They scanned the entire stretch for CCTV cameras. They approached families whose houses had cameras and took away the footage,” he said.

Residents said the businessman had at least three private gunmen who usually accompanied him and were also deployed at his residence. However, they said none of them was present on Thursday night.

Residents said the family kept a low profile, and no one had expected them to come under attack.