Minor Among 5 Detained In Gangster Raju Theth’s Murder In Rajasthan

A day after gangster Raju Theth and another man were shot dead in Sikar district of Rajasthan, five people including a minor were detained on Sunday for their alleged involvement in the murder, a police official said.

Two of them were injured in a brief encounter with police on Sunday, the official said.

Theth was killed on Saturday in a hail of bullets outside his house here. A man, Tarachand Kadwasara, who had gone to meet his daughter studying in a coaching institute there was also hit by bullets and died. The assailants fired at him and stanched the key of his car and fled in it from the spot.

However, the deadlock over the postmortem of the bodies is still continuing over several demands, including compensation and government job to a family member of Kadwasara and security to the Theth's family.

Additional Director General (Crime) Ravi Prakash told reporters here that police have detained Sikar residents Manish Jat (25) and Vikram Gurjar (28), and Haryana's Satish Kumawat (40), Jatin Meghwal (24) and one minor.

He said intense search operations by 15 police teams were launched after the incident and the borders were sealed. 

It was learnt that the accused were hidden in the Dabla area of Sikar near Haryana border. A raid was conducted and Manish and Vikram were nabbed with weapons and live cartridges at around 3 am today. 

According to police, the duo revealed during interrogation that the other accused were hiding in a hilly terrain in Jhunjhunu. The police teams reached the spot and caught Satish and Jatin, along with one minor. 

The accused had opened fire at the police team. In retaliation, police also fired in which Satish and Jatin received bullet injuries, police said.

According to police, Theth, who had more than two dozen criminal cases against him, had a rivalry with dreaded criminal Anandpal Singh, killed in a police encounter in June 2017. 

Out on bail, he used to live a luxurious life and had political ambitions.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused were living in Sikar's Karni hostel and conducted a recce of Theth's house. 

When asked about the gang behind the murder, the ADG said that it was a matter of investigation and nothing concrete could be said at the moment.

Director General of Police Umesh Mishra said in Jaipur that the police personnel who caught the accused will be rewarded.

After the incident, a man identifying himself on Facebook as Rohit Godara, a member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, had claimed responsibility for the killing but later deleted it and posted a new one, saying he has no regrets.

His involvement is also being probed separately, police said. 

In a tweet, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said, "Five accused of yesterday's murder case in Sikar have been arrested along with their weapons and vehicles. Speedy trial of all these accused will be ensured by court to give them severe punishment at the earliest."      

Hours after the murder, a speeding car, believed to be carrying the accused, was spotted in Jhunjhunu district by some locals who claimed that the occupants opened fire at some labourers repairing the road to get the way cleared, police said.

Police launched an intense search in the district. Raids were conducted in areas like Hardiya , Kakriya, Surpura, Bagoli, Papda, Nayabas, and Haripura, officials said.

Godara, who claimed responsibility for the killing in a Facebook post, had also said it was to avenge the death of Anandpal Singh and Balbir Banuda.

Banuda, a member of the Anandpal gang, was killed in a gang war in Bikaner jail in July 2014 and it was alleged that Theth was behind the murder. The Facebook post was later deleted.

However, Godara shared another post on Facebook on Saturday night, saying Theth was his enemy and he has no regrets about his killing but apologised to the family of Kadwasara, a farmer from Nagaur district, and his community. He also said that he will try to support Kadwasara's family in every possible manner.

A CCTV footage has surfaced online in which the accused are seen with Theth at the gate of his house. Shortly after, a tractor-trolley also reached in front of the house and it was stranded when the assailants opened fire at Theth. Police officials suspect that the tractor driver was also involved in the crime.

In another video clip, the accused were seen fleeing after killing Theth.

Meanwhile, family members and relatives of Theth and Kadwasara are sitting on dharna outside the mortuary of the district hospital in Sikar. Congress MLA Mukesh Bhakar from Ladnu in Nagaur has been also present at the dharna since Saturday while Nagaur MP Hanuman Beniwal also reached the site and met the family members on Sunday. 

A relative of Theth said that Theth had sought police protection in February this year as there was a threat to his life but "no action on his demand was taken". 

Sikar MP Swami Sumedhanand also met the family members at the dharna site on Sunday and targeted the state government. 

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Tent Dealers' Committee has announced to make free arrangements of tents in the weddings of Tarachand Kadwasara's all three daughters. Chairman of the committee Ravi Jindal has announced this.

On Saturday, the director of the coaching institute in which Kadwasara's daughter is studying for NEET in Sikar announced to waive off her fees. The director also said if any other member of Kadwasara's family wants to study at his institute, he/she will be provided free coaching.