Missing man’s body found in Najafgarh drain; 2 held for killing him over minor’s rape in 2021

The decomposed body of a 32-year-old man, who was missing since Sunday, was found with a head injury and bricks tied to it in southwest Delhi’s Najafgarh drain Wednesday evening, police said on Friday. Two men were arrested on Thursday in connection with the murder.

During interrogation, the duo said they killed the man, whom they already knew, as an act of revenge, after he allegedly raped a minor girl, a relative of one of the arrested persons, in 2021.

The arrested men first strangled the victim, then hit his head with a brick before tying them to his body and throwing it into the drain, police said.

Deputy commissioner of police (DCP) (Dwarka) Kushal Pal Singh said that on Wednesday evening, the Chhawla police station received a call regarding a human body lying in the Najafgarh drain near Badusarai village The caller told police that he was returning home after work when he spotted the body in the drain.

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“Upon inspection, it appeared that the victim had sustained an injury to the rear side of his head, allegedly caused by a heavy object. Bricks were also found tied to the body, apparently to prevent it from floating to the surface. Local enquiry helped us establish the victim’s identity as Vikram Singh, a 32-year-old resident of Badusarai village,” said DCP Singh. Police said Vikram had been missing since October 25.

After failing to ascertain his whereabouts, his family filed a complaint at the Chhawla police station two days later. A case under section 140(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) was registered.

It was found during a probe that local street vendors from Vikram’s Badusarai village in Chhawla had seen him with two men, Praveen alias Bholu (30), and Sagar (26), of the same village near the drain around 9:30pm on October 24. After scanning CCTV footage in the area, the duo’s presence near the drain on that night was confirmed.

“We took Praveen and Sagar into custody, interrogated them, and confronted them with eyewitnesses and digital evidence after which they confessed to killing Vikram. Praveen disclosed that Vikram in 2021 had allegedly raped a minor girl who was his relative. A protection of children from sexual offences (POCSO) Act case was registered, Vikram was arrested and sent to jail. However, he came out on bail after a few months. Since the trial of the case is still continuing, Praveen was enraged over the delayed justice and planned to kill Vikram,” said an investigator, asking not to be identified.

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On October 24, Praveen and Sagar allegedly lured Vikram near the drain on the pretext of having a liquor party. When Vikram was heavily drunk, Sagar allegedly asked Praveen to kill him and take his revenge, the officer said.

“The two strangled Vikram. When he became unconscious, Praveen picked up a brick and hit his head. After confirming that Vikram was dead, the two put some broken bricks in his trouser’s pockets and also tied bricks to his legs using the shirt he was wearing. Thereafter, they threw the body into the drain and returned home. The murder happened around midnight,” added the officer.