Notorious gangster Vikas Langarpuria was arrested by the Delhi Police on Saturday evening in Dwarka where he had come to meet an associate.
According to the police, he whipped out a pistol to fire at the raiding team, but he was nabbed before he could shoot. The 25-year-old alleged history-sheeter was mainly into extortion, and was wanted in a dozen cases, including murder and attempts to murder. He has been arrested twice in the past, and was out on bail in one of those murder cases.
Langarpuria was also involved in several face-offs with slain ex-MLA Bharat Singh over buying and selling of plots in Najafgarh and nearby areas.
“Almost every disputed plot of land in Najafgarh had Langarpuria’s stamp over it. In some of those cases, he was in direct confrontation with Mr. Singh,” said a senior police officer.
“Even gangs led by criminals like Manjeet Mahal and Naveen Khati feared him,” said the officer.
In 2012, Langarpuria killed two members of the Mahal’s gang within a week. The murders had catapulted him to the top in Delhi’s organised crime ring and made him among the most wanted in the Capital.
Sources said Langarpuria entered the crime world when he was just 16 years old after some local criminals thrashed and humiliated his family members. A BA student at Delhi University’s Ramlal Anand College, he dropped out when he was in his second year.
At the time of his arrest, he was being hunted by the police of five states. The south-west district police were on his trail after his alleged involvement in two fresh crimes over the past three months.
“In mid-April, a businessman in Baba Haridas Nagar accused him of extorting money from him. The same evening, he and his associates fired at another businessman in Chhawla for refusing to pay an extortion amount of Rs. 25 lakh,” said R A Sanjeev, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South West).
Apparently, fond of branded clothes, expensive cars and sophisticated weapons, Langarpuria chose not to carry a mobile phone.
“To keep away from the police’s grasp, he would park his vehicle at least a kilometre away from the place he headed to,” said Mr. Sanjeev.
On Saturday, he parked his car in Dwarka’s Sector-15 and walked to Sector 16-B where he was to meet an associate. A police team awaited him there, sources said.
