A police constable was allegedly gunned down by two land grabbers who pumped five bullets into him in his one-room accommodation at Baprolla in West Delhi on Wednesday night. One of the accused has been arrested.
Twenty-eight-year-old Constable Tanvir was posted as a beat officer under the jurisdiction of Ranhola police station. After his shift on Wednesday, he returned to his residence around 10-30 p.m. An hour later, the police received a call about some quarrel and on reaching the spot found the constable dead. Preliminary examination of Tanvir's body revealed five puncture wounds.
Ten teams were formed to follow various leads in the case. The police learnt that two property agents named Ravinder Singh and Pradeep Sharma, both residents of Baprolla village, could be involved in the murder as the beat officer had intervened when the duo harassed land owners in the area. The accused had on August 22 tried to stop one Shyambir from constructing a boundary wall on his plot, claiming that the property belonged to them.
Responding to the distress call, Constable Tanvir reached there and got Ravinder arrested for breach of peace. His accomplice Pradeep fled from the spot. Ravinder had then allegedly threatened him with dire consequences. The duo allegedly conspired to eliminate the constable. On Wednesday night, they entered his residence and gunned him down.
Acting on a tip-off that Pradeep had been spotted near a Najafgarh drain, the police arrested him in the early hours of Thursday. During interrogation, he purportedly confessed to the crime.
Additional Commissioner of Police (West Delhi) V. Renganathan said Ravinder Singh was previously involved in three cases. In July, he along with Pradeep had allegedly quarrelled with a property dealer, during which they set his office on fire.
Constable Tanvir, who belonged to Rewari in Haryana, had joined the Delhi Police in 2003 and was posted in West Delhi three years ago. He had been working with the Ranhola police station for the past two years as beat officer. He is survived by his wife and two children.
“The post-mortem on his body was conducted at Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital. The body has been handed over to his father,” said Mr. Renganathan.
