: A court in Bijnor has sentenced two men to life imprisonment for conspiring to kill a former prisoner outside the district jail in 2023, in an attack in which their own accomplice was accidentally shot dead.
Additional district and sessions judge and Fast Track Court-II Dr Shahzad Ali convicted Raunak and Harshit Chikara and imposed fines of ₹40,000 on Raunak and ₹30,000 on Harshit.
According to additional district government counsel Pramod Sharma, the incident took place on June 30, 2023, when Rajan, a resident of Shadipur village, was released from Bijnor district jail around 8.15pm.
Jail head warder Ranjit Singh, who was on duty at the gate, said Rajan was outside the jail when Vishal Sharma alias Pandit and Raunak, who were allegedly waiting nearby, confronted him. Rajan recognised Raunak and ran back towards the jail.
The two allegedly chased and surrounded him. Vishal caught Rajan and asked Raunak to shoot him. However, the bullet missed Rajan and struck Vishal, who died on the spot.
Harshit was allegedly monitoring the operation from a distance. The firing also caused splinter injuries to Ranjit Singh and prison guard Rajiv Kumar.
{{/usCountry}}Harshit was allegedly monitoring the operation from a distance. The firing also caused splinter injuries to Ranjit Singh and prison guard Rajiv Kumar.
{{/usCountry}}Police later found that Harshit had allegedly joined Raunak and Vishal in a conspiracy to kill Rajan over an old enmity. The prosecution examined 11 witnesses during the trial. After considering the evidence, the court convicted both men and sentenced them to life imprisonment.