AAP councillor’s husband arrested in youth’s murder case

The husband of an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor, Sandeep Kumar, aged 43, has been apprehended by the police in connection with the murder of a 21-year-old youth named Ajay in Sector 25 late on Monday night. Ajay, who had received a phone call, left home on his motorcycle and was ambushed by a group of assailants who attacked him with sharp-edged weapons, iron rods, and sticks before fleeing the scene.
Responding to the incident, the police arrested Sandeep Kumar under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. The arrest came after two days of protests by the victim’s relatives, who accused Sandeep of orchestrating the attack on Ajay. The family and relatives had blocked the Sector-25 intersection, hindering traffic and refusing to permit an autopsy until Sandeep was taken into custody. They lifted the demonstration after his arrest.
The in-charge of the Sector 24 police post has been transferred to Police Lines. Sandeep, who owns a cloth shop in Sector 25 and has investments in the liquor business, claimed that the allegations against him were part of a political conspiracy. He asserted that he and his wife, councillor Poonam, were not involved in the murder.
It’s worth noting that in 2020, Sandeep had survived a gunshot attack in his shop and had accused the then Sector 24 police post in charge of orchestrating the assault.
Ajay’s brother, Deepak, filed a complaint stating that Ajay had received a phone call before leaving home on his motorcycle. The assailants hit Ajay’s bike from behind and carried out a brutal attack with weapons before fleeing. Ajay was taken to PGIMER but succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday.
The police attributed the attack to personal enmity and arrested one of the assailants, Ajay alias Kallu. According to the police, the victim himself had a history of eight criminal cases, including murder, assault, burglary, theft, Arms Act violations, rape, and rioting, dating back to 2016 and 2017. The court on Wednesday remanded the arrested assailant, Ajay, to police custody until December 9. During interrogation, he disclosed the hideouts of his three accomplices in Hardoi, Pathankot, and Hisar. All are facing charges under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC and relevant sections of the Arms Act.