Gang war in focus after gym owner shot dead in Delhi’s Greater Kailash

New Delhi: The activities of criminal gangs operating in the Capital came into sharp focus on Friday after the police said that a 35-year-old Afghan-origin man, who was gunned down outside the gym he owned in south Delhi’s Greater Kailash-1 area the previous night, was killed by gangsters who suspected he was passing on information to law enforcement agencies.
The assailants fired 8-10 rounds of bullets at point-blank range in what was suspected to be a gang hit — barely 300 metres from the GK1 police station.
Hours after the murder rocked the upscale neighbourhood, fugitive gangster Goldy Brar’s aide Rohit Godara claimed responsibility. The main shooter is still at large.
Two senior officers from the Special Cell New Delhi Range (anti-terror) confirmed that one assistant sub-inspectors and two other police officers were inside the Sharx Gym in E Block, GK-1 and even met the deceased. They were the first responders who rushed the victim to the hospital, they added.
“Shah was also a police informer,” said a senior police officer from south district, requesting anonymity.
The daring murder underlined the growing menace of gangs in Delhi and their frequent battles spilling onto the streets and public spaces. In July, a 32-year-old man was gunned down inside GTB Hospital in north Delhi by members of the Hashim Baba gang. A month earlier, an26-year-old man was shot dead inside a Burger King outlet in west Delhi allegedly by members of the Himanshu Bhau gang.
At 10.43pm on Thursday night, Shah, who ran businesses in Delhi and Dubai, was standing outside his gym when a man walked at him and fired at point blank range. CCTV footage of the incident, accessed by HT, showed the assailant firing eight to 10 rounds at Shah while the victim’s friend hid under his Mercedes car, and later escaped. The assailant was accompanied by at least two men who were not seen in the video, police said.
“Shah was hit byfour bullets and was taken to Max Hospital …The gym was open at the time and there were people inside. We received a call around 10.50pm and reached the spot. We found some bullet projectiles, empty cartridges and blood stains on the pavement outside Shah’s gym,” said Ankit Chauhan, deputy commissioner of police (south).
Hours later, Godara, who is associated with gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi and Goldy Brar, claimed responsibility on social media.
“We got Nadir killed…Our brother in Tihar jail, Baba had sent a message saying that he (Shah) was colluding with our enemies and was creating a hurdle in all our work. So, we got him killed. Whoever colludes with us or our brother’s enemies…will pay the same price. All our enemies should be ready…we will see them soon. Wait and watch…,” Godara posted in Hindi on Facebook.
Baba refers to Hashim Baba — a jailed gangster who has links with Goldy Brar and Lawrence Bishnoi.
An investigating officer said Shah was in touch with many police officers, and allegedly leaked information about Godara-Bishnoi’s associate Hashim Baba to the police.
“It was a well-planned murder which was orchestrated from inside Tihar jail. Baba sent his associates to kill Shah. They suspected him of leaking their private information and getting their men arrested. The accused followed Shah and got him at his gym,” the officer said.
The police refused to divulge the names of the two men arrested but said the main shooter is still on the run. According to police records, Shah had six criminal cases, filed between 2009 and 2018, against him. In 2009, he allegedly fired at policemen in the Hauz Khas area.
Police said Godara was in the US or Canada — where Brar is supposed to be — and was behind the firing outside Canadian singer AP Dhillon’s Vancouver house on September 1.
Police said threeassailants came on a two-wheeler. One of the assailants got down to fire at Shah and all of them fled on the two-wheeler later.
Late evening, the police said four people have been arrested in connection with the case even as the person who shot Shah was still on the run. Police identified the accused as Akash Yadav (24) of Azamgarh; Naveen Baliyan (33) of Sonipat; Nitalesh Tiwari (20) of Kaptanganj and Vishal Varma (19) of Sultanpur Verehata, all in Uttar Pradesh. Two pistols were recovered from their possession.
Police said the arrested suspects tasked with performing a recee in the area, follow Shah and procure weapons and the bike that were used in the crime. They also helped the main shooter escape, police added.
Shah was a resident of the CR Park area. Police said he also had houses in East of Kailash, Bhogal and Faridabad. At the hospital, he was declared dead by the doctors, said the police.
He is survived by his mother, wife and two brothers, one of whom is in Canada. Shah’s father Zahir Shah hailed from Afghanistan. He died of a heart attack in 2021.
Two senior officers from the Special Cell New Delhi Range (anti-terror) confirmed that three policemen were inside the gym when the accused fired at Shah and fled.
“The ASI had gone to meet one of his parents who was admitted at a hospital nearby. He then received a call from an informer who asked him to come to the gym. The ASI and his friends went there. They were inside when it all happened. In fact, they helped Shah and rushed him to the hospital. The ASI had gone there to enquire about some other case…” said a special cell officer.
A second investigating officer said the two arrested men were present on the spot when the firing occurred. “They later helped him escape,” he added.
A second video from the spot showed three to four men running towards Shah and his friend, after the gunshots were fired. As per police, two of the men seen in the footage were special cell officials.
HT reached out to Shah’s business partner and Sharx gym co-owner Akash Kanojia but he refused to comment. The gym was sealed on Friday by the police.
“There was a guard here who saw Shah being killed. The accused came and fired multiple rounds. Nobody could do anything. Cars were passing by and people were inside the gym,” said Rajender Sharda, president of GK M-block market association.
Police said the gang behind the incident was also involved in the murder of a 32-year-old man gunned down inside GTB Hospital in July. Police said the accused, members of the Hashim Baba gang, planned to kill a rival gangster but erroneously killed the victim who was admitted in the same ward.