Hitman Paid To Kill Nagaland Politician Arrested In Lucknow - Eastern Mirror
Thursday, March 28, 2024
image
Nagaland

Hitman paid to kill Nagaland politician arrested in Lucknow

6103
By Our Correspondent Updated: May 19, 2019 12:25 am

Government enhances security measures in the state; senior police officials set to meet Delhi counterparts on Sunday

Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, May 18: The entire Nagaland political establishment was rattled—perhaps like never before—when news broke out on Saturday that the Delhi police had arrested a contract killer paid to kill a top politician in Nagaland after the Lok Sabha elections.

Various national newspapers and agencies reported the arrest of 29-year-old Vijay Farmana—wanted in 11 cases of murder, one rape, an attempt to murder case and several cases of carjacking—by the Delhi police on May 17.

According to the Hindustan Times, in the month of April, “Farmana and his two associates had taken a contract to kill a politician in Nagaland after the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.” His associates were paid a sum of INR 80 lakh and a Ford Endeavour car for the hit job, it reported.

The politician they were paid to assassinate was not named.

Sources in Delhi police told Eastern Mirror that the target was a high-profile politician and the contract to kill him was given by another top politician. However citing the sensitivity of the case, Delhi police was not willing to divulge further information.

The government of Nagaland has responded to the news by sending senior police officers to meet their Delhi counterparts.

On Saturday evening, Chief Secretary, Temjen Toy tweeted: “A team of senior police officers from Nagaland led by an IG (Inspector General) is proceeding to Delhi tomorrow. Meanwhile, security measures have been enhanced.”

Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton, also in charge of Home department, issued a statement lauding Delhi police for arresting the criminal “before an ugly turn of events happened as planned.”

He appealed to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs to form an enquiry committee.

Patton stated that the report carried by Hindustan Times on May 18 has been confirmed at PHQ, Nagaland. He directed the state’s police to coordinate with its Delhi counterparts “to elicit the details of their diabolic designs and also to get into the details of the case and dig out as to who were involved in paying such a huge amount of money to kill a leader from Nagaland.”

He warned that any citizens from Nagaland found directly or indirectly involved with the criminals will be punished “with highest of its kind according to the law.” Patton also asked the law enforcing agencies to beef up security in the state.

The Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) also expressed alarm. “This information needs to be investigated and the law enforcing agencies must reach the enquiry to its logical conclusion. If true, it is condemnable and all sections of Naga society must join hands to ensure that such evil intensions do not pollute our rich social fabric.”

According to Delhi police, Farmana is a graduate from Chhotu Ram Arya Jat College in Sonepat, Haryana. Out of the 11 murders in which Farmana was allegedly involved, three were triple murders committed in Haryana, while the rape was reported from Begampur, Delhi.

Additional commissioner of police (crime) Rajiv Ranjan said, Farmana also ran one of the “biggest syndicates of carjacking” and is suspected to be involved in at least 50 cases. The officer said they have found evidence of Farmana’s role in seven cases, reported from NH8 and Kapashera, among others.

Ranjan said that on Wednesday, they received a tip-off that Farmana, who carried a cash reward of INR 50,000 for his arrest by Delhi police and two cash rewards of INR 50,000 and INR 10,000 by Haryana police, had been spotted in Lucknow, UP.

“Our team reached Lucknow the same day and tracked Farmana. We further received inputs that he will come to meet one of his girlfriends at a shopping mall in Gomti Nagar and a team was deployed. Later, the team spotted Farmana sitting near a food outlet with a woman. As our team tried to nab him, he sensed the trap and tried to flee,” ACP said.

Ranjan added that Farmana pulled out a pistol, but before he could pull the trigger, two officers overpowered him.

Deputy commissioner of police (crime) G Ram Gopal Naik said during interrogation, Farmana has said that in April this year, he and his associates Sharad Pandey and Kapil Chitania went to Nagaland and accepted a contract to kill a politician, but did not reveal who had paid for the hit job.

“Further, he disclosed that he was last arrested in 2007 in a case of attempt to murder. So far, he has accepted his involvement in 11 murders,” Naik said.

In the first triple murder, Farmana and his four aides had kidnapped three students of Modern Institute of Technology (MIT) and killed them. “Their bodies were thrown in the Gang Nahar in Sonipat Sadar, Haryana. Farmana said he had killed the three boys because they had killed Farmana’s brother’s friend, Sanjay,” the DCP said.

“He said that after committing a crime, he and his aides used to flee to other states to evade arrest. He said he had been changing his locations frequently since 2007 and therefore was never arrested,” the officer said.

“He said that he was born and brought up in Farmana village, Haryana. His father is a retired Subedar from Indian Army and mother a homemaker. He said he got into a gang rivalry when a man named Sandeep, from the neighbouring village, killed his brother Ashish’s friend Sanjay. It was in retaliation that he along with his aides then kidnapped the three MIT students. The other two triple murders followed because of their rivalry with Sandeep,” the police officer said.

6103
By Our Correspondent Updated: May 19, 2019 12:25:51 am
Website Design and Website Development by TIS