Ponty Chadha shootout: Namdhari shot at Hardeep, police tell court

Zeenews Bureau

New Delhi: Sacked Uttarakhand Minorities Commission chairman SS Namdhari was the main conspirator in the shootout at the Chhattarpur farmhouse where liquor baron Ponty Chaddha and his brother Hardeep were killed, Delhi police told a city court on Saturday. The police further revealed that it was Namdhari who had fired at Hardeep Chadha on the fateful day. Police has booked him with attempt to murder charges. The city sent former Uttarakhand Minorities Commission chairman to five days police custody. Namdhari, an eyewitness to the shootout at the Chhattarpur farmhouse where liquor baron Ponty Chaddha and his brother Hardeep were killed Nov 17, was Friday arrested from his Bajpur farmhouse in Udham Singh Nagar in Uttarakhand. Namdhari had gone missing from the capital after lodging the First Information Report (FIR) following the incident. Delhi Police has arrested seven people in connection with the case so far. The two brothers were killed in a gun battle at farmhouse number 42, in south Delhi`s Chhattarpur Nov 17. After his arrest, Namdhari said he had already told police what he had seen on the fateful day. "I had known Ponty Chaddha since 1994 and I was with him when the incident took place. I took him to hospital and also lodged an FIR," he said. He added that he had left his cellphone numbers with Delhi Police and had come to Uttarakhand after police allowed him to leave. "They (Delhi Police) told me to go and said they would call me when I was required," he added. He said he had switched off his phone for two days as he was being hounded by the media for statements. Namdhari was sacked as the chairman of the Uttarakhand Minority Commission after the shootout. He has more than three dozen cases against him, which include murder, attempt to murder, dacoity and several others. (With Agency Inputs)