NEW DELHI: In yet another targeted killing in the capital’s ongoing gang war, unidentified gunmen shot dead their rival in southwest Delhi’s Najafgarh on Friday evening. The victim was a witness in a case of double murder reported last year.The attack is suspected to be the work of the Gogi gang. Earlier this week, gangster Kapil Sangwan’s shooters murdered the nephew of rival Manjeet Mahal. The target’s daughter was also shot at in the melee.In Friday’s incident, police received a PCR call around 7.20pm and rushed to the spot. The victim, later identified as Neeraj, a resident of Nangli Shakrawati, was sitting in his car when he was ambushed by two-three bike-borne assailants around 7.15pm in Najafgarh. Police said the attackers fired multiple rounds at Neeraj, killing him on the spot.The killing is being seen as a move to silence witnesses and derail the investigation in the double murder case. Police suspect gangster Harsh Dhankad alias Chintu, recently deported from the Maldives, and absconding gangster Sanju Dahiya, currently believed to be abroad, may have orchestrated the killing. Both are considered close aides of slain gangster Jitender Gogi and are thought to be reviving the gang’s operations.The assailants fled the scene after the shooting. Police launched a search operation and are scanning CCTV footage from the area to identify them.Neeraj, wanted in a 2021 murder case, was on the run as police had declared a reward of Rs 1 lakh on him. He was affiliated with the Tillu Tajpuria gang, an arch rival of the Gogi faction, and also worked for the Kaushal Chaudhary gang.Sources said that Neeraj was a crucial witness in a high-profile Feb 2024 double murder case, in which two men were shot in the head from point-blank range inside a salon in Najafgarh. The victims were identified as Sonu (34) and Ashish (21), small-time bookies who had rental businesses. Ashish had a criminal record, police said. Neeraj, who was a friend of the duo, had escaped by hiding in a room when the gunmen appeared.
