Undertrial shot dead at Rohini court in Delhi, killing sparks security concerns for lawyers, judges

New Delhi: An undertrial was on Monday shot dead inside the Rohini court complex, triggering chaos in the court premises and raising concerns over the security of lawyers and judges. The victim, Vinod alias Balle, was produced by the staff of Third Battalion in Rohini Court, said Rishi Pal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rohini). While he was being taken back, he was shot at by an assailant at 11.20 a.m. The accused was arrested from the spot and the weapon of offence seized, he said. The incident happened near the canteen area, triggering chaos in court premises. It has also raised concerns over the security of lawyers and judges inside the court premises. It is suspected that the accused posed as a litigant. Vinod was taken to Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital where he was declared brought dead, said Pal. [caption id=“attachment_4208081” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] He was involved in a case of cheating that was lodged in South Rohini police station in 2010. Vinod was in judicial custody for the last 14 days. He had no other criminal involvement apart from this case where he had forged someone’s signature on a cheque, the police said. Police are probing whether the incident was the fallout of a gang war since the accused claimed to be a member of gangster Neeraj Bawana’s gang. SN Sharma, former secretary of Rohini Court Bar Assocition, who was present in the corridor where Vinod was shot, said, “He was shot at point blank range. One of the accused was nabbed while the other managed to flee.” Sharma said that the incident has triggered fear among judges and lawyers about their safety inside the court premises. He claimed that the court, which has five entrance gates, has metal detectors and scanner machines but none of them are functional making it easy for people to bring in weapons. He also said that the CCTV cameras are not functional. Other lawyers at Rohini court also expressed concern over the firing incident and urged the court administration to enforce a pass system for entry of litigants in the premises to ensure safety. The Rohini Court Bar Association (RCBA) said if the pass system is not implemented at the earliest, they would go on an indefinite strike from 15 November and will not participate in any judicial work. Following the incident, the in-charge of the police post in Rohini Court, sub-inspector Narender was suspended while the Station House Officer of Prashant Vihar police station was sent to district lines. The RCBA also convened meetings with senior judges of the Rohini court and police officials and have raised the issue of security as such incidents had also happened in the past. Rohini Court has earlier also been a ground used by rival gangs to settle scores. This is the second such incident near the court complex. In April, a 38-year-old undertrial was shot dead outside the Rohini Court. Rajesh Durmut, a member of Ashok Pradhan gang, was gunned down by people who had been hired by the Neeraj Bawana gang. In 2004, the Delhi Police’s Special Cell had arrested 10 men, suspected to be affiliated to Neeraj Bawana-Naveen Baali gang who had come as part of a plan to carry out a shootout at the Rohini Court. The investigators had claimed that one of the accused was disguised as a lawyer and had come to the court to kill Pradeep Bhola, a member of their rival Neetu Dabodia gang.