A GOD-FEARING PERSON, HARD TO BELIEVE HE KILLED FOUR PEOPLE, SAY NEIGHBOURS
GURUGRAM: Neighbours of a 59-year-old retired army subedar, who allegedly murdered his daughter-in-law and three tenants over suspicions of an illicit relationship, said that they are shocked by the incident as he was a “kind-hearted and peaceful” person. Many also expressed suspicion that the suspect, Rao Rai Singh, may be taking the fall for someone else.
Residents of the area said they initially thought that the house was robbed.
Mahesh Kumar, a neighbour, said, “No one can believe he killed four people. We believed it only after the news channels started gathering outside the building and police officers confirmed the news on camera.”
A second neighbour, who did not want to be named, suspected that Singh was taking the blame for a family member. “He is a kind-hearted person and was always peaceful. He always helped patch up relations and held no grudges. He is protecting someone,” the neighbour said.
A shopkeeper said, “He wanted the tenants to vacate the house but it is unbelievable that he could kill them over this. He is a god-fearing person.”
Singh took early retirement from the Army’s Kumao regiment in 2001 and settled in Gururgam along with his family, following which he started a real estate business. He was also the vice-president of the residents’ welfare association and took an active role to organise programmes on special occasions.
However, a relative of the tenants who were murdered, said that he always troubled his tenants. “He has a questionable character,” said Varendra Shukla, a relative of the victim and a neighbour.