3 killed after gang members open fire in north Delhi

Gunshots rang out in north Delhi's Burari area today as members of a criminal gang opened fire at a group of men, suspected to be the members of a rival gang, killing three persons, including a woman passerby, police said.

Five persons were injured after suspected members of the Gogi gang, believed to be involved in cases of murder in the city, opened fire at four men coming out of a gym.

Police said around eight to nine rounds were fired by the Gogi gang members for around five minutes.

It is suspected that Jitender Gogi, kingpin of the Gogi gang, carrying a cash reward of Rs 4 lakh on his head, was also inside the car, along with his gang members, they said.

The probe in the case has been taken over by the Special Cell, they added.

"It cannot be said with certainty that the incident was a fallout of rivalry between members of the Gogi and Tillu gangs. It cannot be said with certainty that the victims were members of the Tillu gang. They are residents of Tajpur village here, which also happens to be the native place of Sunil alias Tillu, kingpin of the Tillu gang, but it cannot be said with confirmation that victims belonged to the Tillu gang," an officer from the Special Cell said.

According to a senior police officer, the fight started when four residents of Tajpur village, who were boarding a Scorpio vehicle after coming out of a gym, were hit by a Fortuner, allegedly being driven by members of the Gogi gang from the backside.

The occupants of the Fortuner started firing indiscriminately at the Scorpio.

Two of the victims -- Mukul and Himanshu -- could not get inside the car and started running to save their lives.

Two others, identified as Jitender and Surender, were in the car and started driving to save themselves from the barrage of bullets being fired.

Mukul was shot dead and it is suspected that he received three-four bullet injuries. Himanshu, who was also running to escape from the indiscriminate firing, sustained a bullet injury in his thigh.

Jitender and Surender, who were in the car, were found in an injured condition in the lane behind the place of the incident.

A motorcycle rider was hit by the speeding Scorpio and died in the accident.

Later, the Fortuner car, in which the Gogi gang members had arrived, was found outside the Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, with a man's body inside.

It is suspected that the man is Sanjeet, a member of the Gogi gang, though police are yet to confirm his identity.

The man had one bullet injury in his leg, suspected to have been inflicted by one of his gang members during the attack. He died due to excessive bleeding.

A 37-year-old woman, identified as Sangeeta, who happened to be passing by, was also killed, police said.

The injured were identified as Himanshu, Jitender and Surender and two passersby Vashisht and Sachin.

Surender and Jitender are currently undergoing treatment at the Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, while Himanshu is admitted to the Sant Parmanand Hospital. The two injured passersby are in the LNJP Hospital, police said.

A senior officer, privy to the probe, said that the incident is suspected to be a fallout of a personal enmity.

"Mukul's maternal uncle, Deepak, was allegedly killed by Gogi in 2015. Mukul was following up on that case and was arranging witnesses. Deepak allegedly had an affair with Gogi's cousin and used to boast about it and say he is Gogi's 'jija', which enraged the latter who killed him," the officer said.

Police have not completely ruled out the gang rivalry angle and are also probing whether the incident had anything to do with the rivalry between the Gogi and Tillu gangs that had begun in 2010 during the Delhi University elections.

The two gangs have killed each other's members earlier to gain supremacy, the officer said.