Prime witness in ex-Delhi MLA Bharat Singh's murder case shot dead

New Delhi: A prime witness in the case of murder of former MLA Bharat Singh was on Tuesday shot dead allegedly by four unidentified men near Japanese Park in Sector 12 of outer Delhi's Rohini sub-city, police said.

The deceased has been identified as Vipin, 24, who was the driver and aide of former INLD legislator Singh, said police.

The incident was reported at around 5.45 PM when a car intercepted Vipin's motorbike and around four men got off the vehicle who overpowered Vipin and allegedly started to thrash him.

When he tried to run away, they chased him and allegedly shot him multiple times, said a senior police official citing eyewitnesses.

At least three bullets hit Vipin after which he collapsed while the assailants fled in the car, he added.

Police said they came across a few eyewitnesses who told them that Vipin was riding alone. The total number of assailants was reported to have been four. However, these details are yet to be verified, said the official.

The scene of the crime -- a desolated stretch with no buildings or installations -- is such that it is difficult to to find any CCTV footage, the official added.

It is suspected that the murder was planned in advance and the location was part of the plan, he said.

"A case of murder has been registered at Prashant Vihar police station and investigation is underway. Vipin's body has been sent for a post-mortem.

"His relatives maintain that Vipin had received no threat," said DCP (Outer) Vikramjit Singh.

Former INLD legislator from Najafgarh, Bharat Singh, was shot dead by assailants in March this year following which six persons, including the alleged mastermind, identified as one Udaiveer alias Kaale, and Nitin Sherawat, the son of a former Delhi MLA, were arrested by Crime Branch.

However, the alleged co-conspirator, Hemant, who is Udaiveer's nephew, is still at large. He is now one of the suspects in Vipin's murder, said a police official.