Relative in Canada planned ASI’s murder in Karnal: STF

On June 2, two-bike borne men had shot dead Sanjeev Kumar, an ASI with the state crime branch in Kurukshetra, in Kutail village of Karnal. Police say the victim’s brother-in-law Rajesh, who lives in Canada, hired the hitmen

Four days after an assistant sub-inspector-rank cop with Haryana Police was shot dead in Karnal, the Special Task Force (STF) arrested three men from Uttar Pradesh for the crime, officials said on Saturday.

The three accused in the murder of an ASI in Karnal in STF custody on Saturday. (HT Photo)

They were identified as Khitender, 32, Mohit, 19 and Tushar, 18, all natives of Aligarh district in UP. They were arrested on Friday and presented before a court the next day, from where they were sent to three-days STF remand.

On June 2, two-bike borne men had shot dead Sanjeev Kumar, an ASI with the state crime branch in Kurukshetra, in Kutail village of Karnal.

A case was registered at Madhuban police station and a reward of ₹20,000 was announced for information on the assailants.

Aman Kumar, DSP, STF Gurugram, said that a team led by inspector Deepender Kumar arrested the trio from Aligarh, based on credible inputs and scientific evidence, and recovered a pistol from them.

“As per the investigation, the victim’s brother-in-law Rajesh, who lives in Canada, hired Khitender for the murder, who knew the family well. Khitender further roped in Mohit and Tushar as shooters, and all three were in Karnal since June 29. So far, it has emerged that Rajesh and Sanjeev had a property dispute. Rajesh gave ₹2 lakh to Khitender for the crime, with a promise to pay ₹4-5 lakh more after the murder,” he added.

Meanwhile, one of the shooters, Mohit received bullet injuries in his leg, as he tried to escape from STF custody near Sector 6 on Friday night.

On this, the DSP said that he got down from the vehicle to relieve himself but tried to flee and the cops had to fire on him. He was later taken to the civil hospital for treatment.

“Khitender also claims to be the national president of Hindu Dharma Rakhsha Dal and the shooters are his Aligarh district office-bearers. We will try to recover the bike used in the crime and initiate process to reach Rajesh during their remand,” he added.