Kaushal gang member held for ‘bookie’ murder

A few men, suspected to be members of the Kaushal gang, waylaid him outside Parsvnath Green Ville, hardly 550 metres from his home and fired five shots at him, two of which hit Batra’s head.

The alleged mastermind in the murder of 40-year-old Vijay Batra, alias Tantrik, who was shot dead outside a condominium on Sohna Road on February 22, has been arrested, police said Friday.

Kaushal gang member held for ‘bookie’ murder. (Representative Image) (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The accused, identified as Surjeet alias Bullet (23), was arrested from Devi Lal Park in Palam Vihar on Thursday when he was buying street food, police said, adding that he is suspected to be a member of the Kaushal gang and was asked to track Batra’s movements and help them kill him.

Police said Batra owned ₹60 lakh to the gang. The allegedly lost the money in a bet last year.

According to the police, Surjeet had conducted a recce of Batra’s house and was passing information to his associates, who were assigned the task to kill him, police said, adding that Surjeet was responsible for planning.

He had called his accomplices to the spot and surround the victim on February 22, when Batra, a resident of Park View City-1 in Sector 48, was returning home around 11.45 pm.

A few men, suspected to be members of the Kaushal gang, waylaid him outside Parsvnath Green Ville, hardly 550 metres from his home and fired five shots at him, two of which hit Batra’s head. He was taken to a private hospital by a friend, who spotted him after the incident, but was declared brought dead.

“Surjeet was following Batra from Arjun Nagar on a two-wheeler and had informed his gang that Batra was returning home. They reached Sohna Road before Batra and waited for a signal. As soon as Batra entered the service lane, Surjeet called them and the assailants surrounded his car from three sides,” assistant commissioner of police (crime) Shamsher Singh said.

The police said Surjeet took out a baseball bat and smashed Batra’s car window before shooting at him to ensure the bullets do not ricochet.

After the killing, the victim’s family had handed over an audio recording of a conversation in which the deceased had received a call, allegedly from gangster Kaushal. They alleged that the gang was demanding ₹50 lakh and threatening Batra.

The accused hails from Darbhanga in Bihar, but had been living in Palam Vihar for the last 10 months. The scooter he used in crime was bought in December on loan. He was involved with Kaushal for the last 10 months and was involved in his extortion business.

Surjeet was produced before the district court on Friday and taken on five days police remand.

Singh said the Delhi police will bring Sandeep, surrendered before Janakpuri special cell on Monday, on production warrant in district court. They will apply for his police remand.