Saw suspects before shooting, cops ignored calls for help: Kin

nGHAZIABAD: The family of slain 35-year-old journalist, Vikram Joshi, on Thursday alleged that the suspects who shot him were roaming around Joshi’s sister’s house in Mata Colony — it was outside her house that he was shot -- about two hours before the shooting took place on the night of July 20.

The family alleged that despite Joshi making several calls to the police on spotting them, the local police post in-charge put the matter off, saying he would look into it the next morning.

Joshi had gone to his sister’s house to attend his niece’s birthday party. Around 10.30pm, when he and his daughters were returning home, a group of assailants, with whom he had a previous run-in, cornered him and shot him in the head. He succumbed to the gunshot wound on July 22.

“On the night of the shooting, the suspects, including Ravi and Chotu, were seen near our house in Mata Colony. When my uncle (Joshi) saw them, he called the local police post in-charge around 8.30pm and told him about it. But the post in-charge told him that he will look into the matter the next morning,” said Vimal Joshi, Joshi’s nephew.

“Two hours later, when my uncle left the house on his twowheeler with his daughters, the men shot him. Had the police post in-charge acted on time, my uncle would be alive today,” he added.

Kalanidhi Naithani, senior superintendent of police, did not respond to repeated attempts to reach him for comment.

Manish Mishra, superintendent of police (city), said the police post in-charge was suspended soon after the incident. “All complaints raised by Joshi’s family are being looked into and an inquiry against the police post in-charge has been initiated. It is being taken up by circle officer (city 1). Anyone found guilty will not be spared,” he said.

On July 16, Joshi’s family and the suspects had got into a fight and later both parties approached the local police post with complaints. The family has alleged that the police did not lodge Joshi’s complaint in which he had accused the suspects of harassing his niece. An FIR on this complaint was registered only the day after Joshi was shot.

The FIR names prime suspect Ravi Kumar, Shahnoor alias Chotu (who allegedly shot Joshi with a countrymade weapon) and two other unidentified men. The Ghaziabad police has so far arrested nine suspects, including Ravi Kumar and Shahnoor alias Chotu.

On Thursday, Ghaziabad MP general (retired) VK Singh visited Joshi’s family at his house in Krishna Nagar Colony and handed over a cheque of ₹10 lakh which was promised by the state government as ex-gratia. Joshi’s wife has also been promised a job by the government.