India: INLD Haryana president, party worker shot dead in ambush by gunmen in Jhajjar

Haryana opposition leader Nafe Singh Rathee, who was the state president of the Indian National Lok Dal, and a party worker were killed when unidentified assailants came in a car and sprayed bullets on their SUV in Bahadurgarh near Delhi on Sunday, a senior party leader said.

Three private gunmen hired by Rathee for security also suffered injuries in the attack, said reports.

The attack, which came weeks before the Lok Sabha elections, raised political temperature and drew sharp reactions from opposition parties, which alleged a breakdown in law and order in the BJP-ruled state.

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Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said he spoke to officials and ordered them to take immediate action in the matter.

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He said the Special Task Force is probing the matter and the culprits will be nabbed soon.

INLD leader Abhay Chautala told PTI news agency that Rathee and a party worker accompanying him were shot dead.

Three private gunmen, whom Rathee had hired for security, also received injuries, Chautala said, adding, "No police security had been given to him."

Chautala later visited the hospital in Bahadurgarh where the bodies were kept.

Speaking to reporters there, he demanded a CBI probe into the incident.

Rathee, aged around 70, was travelling in an SUV when the assailants, who were in a car, attacked him in Bahadurgarh town in Jhajjar district.

"A volley of bullets was sprayed at him," Chautala said.

Doctors at the hospital said that Rathee had suffered injuries in neck, stomach, spine and thigh and suffered heavy blood loss.

Rathee was elected MLA from Bahadurgarh twice in 1996 and 2005.

Rathee himself faced a series of criminal charges including cheating, breach of trust, forgery, and criminal conspiracy, among others.

In January 2023, the Haryana Police filed an FIR against Rathee and five others in connection with the alleged suicide of local BJP leader Jagdish Numberdar.

A lookout circular was issued by the Jhajjar district police to prevent Rathee from leaving the country.

As per reports, police suspect the involvement of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his close aide Kala Jathedi inthe fatal attack on Ratheeand initial inquiries point to some property disputes.

Chautala accused the government of failing to provide Rathee with security despite there being a threat to his life and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Home Minister Anil Vij.

"The two-time MLA, who is our state unit chief, was not provided with security. In writing, representations had been made to senior police officers and state home minister that he was facing threats and should be provided with security," he said.

"Rathee had earlier told me that that he was informed by some police personnel that he faces threat. Later, I also spoke to SP Jhajjar over the phone and brought this to his notice....Had he been provided with security, such a situation would not have arisen," Chautala said.

He also said that law and order has broken down in Haryana and that has been proved yet again.

Jhajjar Superintendent of Police Arpit Jain told reporters that teams of the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) and the Special Task Force (STF) of the police were looking into the incident.

"Multiple teams are probing. We are probing all angles and we will try to arrest the accused soon," he said.

The opposition Congress and Aam Aadmi Party also hit out at the Manohar Lal Khattar government over the incident.

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Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the BJP has ruined law and order in Haryana.

Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda while expressing grief at Rathee's killing, said, "The news of INLD state president Nafe Singh Rathee being shot dead in Haryana is very sad. This reflects the law and order of the state...Today no one is feeling safe in the state."

Another senior Congress leader, Kumari Selja, alleged that anarchy has increased so much in the state that fearless miscreants fired several rounds of bullets at Rathee.

The BJP has created a jungle raj in the state, she alleged.

(With inputs from agencies)