PCR van just 10 metres away, man stabbed to death in Delhi's Govindpuri: Probe

Days after a 31-year-old man, Vishal Sharma, was stabbed to death in Govindpuri in the early hours of Wednesday, an internal enquiry by the Delhi Police has revealed that three policemen witnessed the incident 10 metres away, while sitting in a PCR van.

Police said two men stabbed Sharma around 20 times with a sharp-edged weapon before escaping in front of the cops. The incident has been recorded on a CCTV camera installed in a nearby shop. It shows a policeman come out of the vehicle, but step back after one of the attackers shows him a khukri (carved knife).

When contacted, DCP (PCR) Sharat Kumar Sinha said they are conducting an enquiry and no action has been taken against the three personnel so far.

During the enquiry, it also came to light that the first PCR call was made by the victim's brother, while the second was made by the cops in the PCR van themselves. However, they allegedly refused to take the victim's body in their van. "Sharma was taken by his brother to AIIMS Trauma Centre, where he was declared dead on arrival. CCTV footage shows that after receiving the PCR call, local police rushed to the spot. At that time also, the PCR van was stationed there," a police source said.

DCP (South East) R P Meena said a PCR call regarding a murder near Hanuman Temple at Gurudwara Chowk was received around 3 am . "The deceased had a quarrel with Yash and Shubham, after which he was stabbed multiple times by them. Sharma was allegedly a local goon and used to beat up Yash and Shubham. The victim also suspected Yash of attacking him in 2017," he said.

Police sources in the PCR unit told The Sunday Express, "Around 2.20 pm, Sharma ran into Shubham and allegedly started beating him. At one point, he took him near the PCR van, where Shubham requested police to intervene. But police allegedly asked them to resolve their personal dispute and stay away from the PCR van," a source said.

Meanwhile, Shubham called up Yash for help. The source said, "He came with a khukri and started stabbing Vishal. CCTV footage shows the incident lasted 15 minutes."

(Inputs from The Indian Express)