Fear pulled the trigger, or was it just greed?

Fear pulled the trigger, or was it just greed?

RAJBIR ENCOUNTER: His tone was getting ominous... That is when I shot him: Bhardwaj

Sahim Salim

Posted online: Thursday, March 27, 2008 at 0009 hrs IST

Gurgaon, March 26
The police have pieced together a tentative motive behind the murder of assistant commissioner of police Rajbir Singh from the circumstantial evidence available till now and also from the testimony of accused Vijay Bhardwaj — and it looks like the property dealer might have wanted to stall the process of paying back Singh the money owed.

Bhardwaj’s help Krishna has told officers that he had sneaked out of his employer’s office when the two were arguing on Monday night. He took with him a bagful of cash to a neighbour’s shop to count. The shopowner had even asked Krishna why he did not count the money in Bhardwaj’s office, officers said, to which Krishna had replied: “If I count the money in front of the ACP sahab, he will take it.” Though officers are yet to find that bag, Krishna told them there was Rs 2.5 lakh in it and that it was meant for someone in Sinkandarpur.

Bhardwaj has meanwhile come up with only one refrain during the several rounds of interrogation he faced on Wednesday — fear was the trigger. He has told the police: “Bhaisahab was threatening to kill me in an encounter. I was scared and not thinking clearly on Monday night. When I sent Krishna out for the candles, I realised I was alone with Bhaisahab. His tone was getting ominous. That is when I shot him.”

Bhardwaj has also told officers that he jumped the gun on Singh because he was unaware Singh’s service revolver was not on him. The ACP had left behind the gun in a briefcase in his Qualis.

The postmortem report, meanwhile, has revealed that Singh did not have a drink in Bhardwaj’s office that night. Coroner at the Civil Hospital Dr S K Sharma told Newsline that death was instant. He said: “Both shots were from a close range. Both bullets travelled through his skull and came out from the temple.”

Gurgaon Joint Commissioner Manjeet Singh Ahlawat said the assault weapon had been found. “There were four bullets in the .32 bore gun. It is from a Kanpur ordnance unit. Two shots were fired and the other live cartridges have been recovered,” Ahlawat said. The Gurgaon police have sent a special team to Kanpur to establish the gun’s ownership.

On Monday night, Singh had come in his official Qualis, accompanied by his personal security officer (PSO) and his driver. Another escort vehicle, an Ambassador, was also tailing Singh, but Singh asked these men to wait at the IFFCO Chowk. Once Singh was inside the office, he instructed his PSO and the driver to wait at a petrol station 10 m away.

These men did not hear any gunshots, officers said, adding that a preliminary scout of the neighborhood had revealed that no one heard the shots. This could also be because several generators were on as power was out at the time of the crime.

Officers have analysed the call details of both Singh and Bhardwaj’s mobiles and it looks prima facie that the accused’s confessional statements match the evidence acquired.

The postmortem report has narrowed down the time of the murder between 10 and 10.15 pm. Bhardwaj was arrested on Monday, shortly after midnight. Officers said he spent these two hours roaming the area in his red Verna, when he made calls to his lawyers, the media and finally the police.

	Print Story
Fear pulled the trigger, or was it just greed? RAJBIR ENCOUNTER: His tone was getting ominous... That is when I shot him: Bhardwaj Sahim Salim Posted online: Thursday, March 27, 2008 at 0009 hrs IST Gurgaon, March 26 The police have pieced together a tentative motive behind the murder of assistant commissioner of police Rajbir Singh from the circumstantial evidence available till now and also from the testimony of accused Vijay Bhardwaj — and it looks like the property dealer might have wanted to stall the process of paying back Singh the money owed. Bhardwaj’s help Krishna has told officers that he had sneaked out of his employer’s office when the two were arguing on Monday night. He took with him a bagful of cash to a neighbour’s shop to count. The shopowner had even asked Krishna why he did not count the money in Bhardwaj’s office, officers said, to which Krishna had replied: “If I count the money in front of the ACP sahab, he will take it.” Though officers are yet to find that bag, Krishna told them there was Rs 2.5 lakh in it and that it was meant for someone in Sinkandarpur. Bhardwaj has meanwhile come up with only one refrain during the several rounds of interrogation he faced on Wednesday — fear was the trigger. He has told the police: “Bhaisahab was threatening to kill me in an encounter. I was scared and not thinking clearly on Monday night. When I sent Krishna out for the candles, I realised I was alone with Bhaisahab. His tone was getting ominous. That is when I shot him.” Bhardwaj has also told officers that he jumped the gun on Singh because he was unaware Singh’s service revolver was not on him. The ACP had left behind the gun in a briefcase in his Qualis. The postmortem report, meanwhile, has revealed that Singh did not have a drink in Bhardwaj’s office that night. Coroner at the Civil Hospital Dr S K Sharma told Newsline that death was instant. He said: “Both shots were from a close range. Both bullets travelled through his skull and came out from the temple.” Gurgaon Joint Commissioner Manjeet Singh Ahlawat said the assault weapon had been found. “There were four bullets in the .32 bore gun. It is from a Kanpur ordnance unit. Two shots were fired and the other live cartridges have been recovered,” Ahlawat said. The Gurgaon police have sent a special team to Kanpur to establish the gun’s ownership. On Monday night, Singh had come in his official Qualis, accompanied by his personal security officer (PSO) and his driver. Another escort vehicle, an Ambassador, was also tailing Singh, but Singh asked these men to wait at the IFFCO Chowk. Once Singh was inside the office, he instructed his PSO and the driver to wait at a petrol station 10 m away. These men did not hear any gunshots, officers said, adding that a preliminary scout of the neighborhood had revealed that no one heard the shots. This could also be because several generators were on as power was out at the time of the crime. Officers have analysed the call details of both Singh and Bhardwaj’s mobiles and it looks prima facie that the accused’s confessional statements match the evidence acquired. The postmortem report has narrowed down the time of the murder between 10 and 10.15 pm. Bhardwaj was arrested on Monday, shortly after midnight. Officers said he spent these two hours roaming the area in his red Verna, when he made calls to his lawyers, the media and finally the police.