Shooting: Investigators rule out ‘religion’ angle
GURUGRAM: The police on Tuesday ruled out that a personal security officer (PSO) shooting the wife and son of an additional district and sessions judge in the city last week had anything to do with his alleged conversion to another faith. However, the police still haven’t been able to figure out the motive.
The accused, 32-year-old Mahipal Singh, had earlier told the police that he had committed the crime as he was possessed by a spirit.
In a video shared on social media, the accused was seen yelling ‘shaitaan’ (devil) at Dhruv and his mother, after shooting at them in broad daylight near Arcadia Market in Sector 49.
Singh had also told investigators that he had converted to Christianity and used to spend several hours on the Internet surfing religious videos, prompting investigators to probe if the accused had been religiously motivated.
KK Rao, commissioner of police, Gurugram, said on Tuesday that the preliminary probe by a special investigation team (SIT) had revealed that there was no religious angle or association to the crime.
“The earlier claims of him being mentally disturbed are false and there is no religious angle. The police are investigating
MAHIPAL, 32, THE ACCUSED, HAD EARLIER TOLD THE POLICE THAT HE HAD COMMITTED THE CRIME BECAUSE HE WAS POSSESSED BY A SPIRIT
to ascertain the motive behind the crime — whether it was spurred by rage after an altercation or frustration due to being asked to do menial chores,” Rao said.
The police said that the cyber cell could not corroborate the claims of the accused after a perusal of his recent online activity. A police officer privy to the investigation said they did not find any evidence of the accused’s baptism.
The police has contacted eyewitnesses, who recorded the incident on Saturday on their cellphones and shared videos on social media, to record their statements.
On Saturday, head constable Mahipal, who was deputed as the PSO of additional sessions and district judge Krishan Kant since 2017, shot Kant’s wife, Ritu Garg (38), and son, Dhruv (18), and fled in the judge’s car . While Ritu succumbed to her injuries on Saturday night, her son continues to be critical.
After the incident, Mahipal called the judge and told him that he had shot them.