A 70-year-old retired Army brigadier general died in Dehradun on Monday morning after being shot when a car occupant opened fire on another car amid a high-speed chase sparked by a late-night brawl at a club in the city, police said.
This is the latest in a series of crimes in the Uttarakhand state capital, which was once known for its tranquility and laid-back lifestyle.
Two groups of 10 men got into a brawl inside a Gen-Z club on Mussoorie Road on Sunday evening. Then a group of six people waited outside until the early morning for the other group. When the second group of four people left in a Toyota Fortuner, the first jumped into a Scorpio N car and chased them, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Bramendra Dobhal said.
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The chase, which lasted about 10 minutes, covered about 3 kilometers and passed through the city’s peri-urban green hilly belt, officials familiar with the matter said.
At around 6.50 am near Johri village, the occupants of a Scorpio car allegedly opened fire on the tires of a Fortuner in an attempt to stop the vehicle, SSP said.
However, a bullet hit retired Brigadier M K Joshi, a resident of Tula Greens near Johri village, who was on a morning walk with his brother-in-law, Rakesh Kumar Upreti and another resident of the society, SP Sharma, the SSP said, adding that he was rushed to a nearby hospital on Mussoorie Road, where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment.
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While the Fortuner was registered in Delhi, the Scorpio N had a temporary number, officials said.
Later, the police arrested four people from both groups for committing the crime. They have been identified as Rohit Kumar (20), a resident of Uttam Nagar in Delhi, Muhammad Akhlaq (23), a resident of Bihar, club owner Sandeep Kumar (43), a resident of Nangloi in Delhi, and Aditya Chaudhary of the second group (20), a resident of Raipur in Dehradun.
SSP Dobhal said the case stems from a fight in the club, ruling out initial speculation that road rage was behind the tragedy. He added, “The passengers of the ship Scorpio waited outside the club until the early morning and then chased the ship Fortuner. During the shooting, the brigadier general, who was on a morning walk, was hit by a bullet in the chest.”
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Police said the car lost control after the shooting and crashed into a tree near a government primary school in the village. Following the incident, the Scorpio’s occupants allegedly assaulted those inside the Fortuner and damaged the vehicle. Police added that two people traveling in the Fortuner were injured and were taken to the hospital.
SSP Dobhal and other officials rushed to the spot and later visited the hospital to collect details.
“The accused fled the scene after the accident. An intensive area-wide screening operation is underway to track them down. CCTV footage from nearby roads is also being scanned,” the Public Prosecution said, adding that the occupants of the Fortuner car were arrested, while the search for the occupants of the Scorpio car was on. People familiar with the matter said the fight was over an allegedly inflated bill.
The police registered a first information report (FIR) against unidentified persons under Section 103 (1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Rajpur police station, based on Upreti’s complaint.
In his complaint, Upreti said they were on a morning walk when they arrived near a government primary school and noticed a white car and a black car approaching at high speed.
“Within minutes, a bullet was fired with intent to kill. The bullet hit my brother-in-law in the chest and he collapsed. He was bleeding profusely. With the help of SP Sharma and others, we took him to Max Hospital, where doctors declared him dead,” he said.
In February, a Jharkhand gangster, facing more than 50 criminal cases, was shot dead by three assailants at Silver City Mall on Rajpur Road in Dehradun.
“There is no specific reason for the alleged rise in crime rate. In most of the reported incidents, the accused had no prior criminal background, except the case of murder by a gangster, which involved a professional gang,” police inspector (city) Pramod Kumar said.
“We will convene a meeting of stakeholders, including representatives of colleges and universities, to ensure law and order in the city. We will take the initiative to increase police presence in areas where such incidents occur,” the SP said.
“We have lost an innocent life. We have lost in a city and a state that is gradually becoming the most fertile for gang wars, goons, stray tourists and criminals of all shades,” said Dehradun-based social activist Anoop Nautiyal.
