In a shocking incident near the outskirts of the national capital, Haryana witnessed the brutal assassination of a prominent political figure. Nafe Singh Rathee, the president of the Haryana Unit of the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), along with two party workers, one being Jaikishan, were mercilessly gunned down near Bahadurgarh town in Jhajjar district. The attackers, four in number, launched a surprise assault on Rathee and his associates using an I20 car to execute their deadly plan.
Rathee was ambushed while traveling in his Toyota Fortuner (SUV), which had come to a halt at a railway crossing. The assailants seized this moment of vulnerability and sprayed the vehicle with bullets, leading to the death of Rathee and one aide while critically wounding two others. A CCTV footage capture of the area showed the assailants’ car following Rathee’s SUV before and after the grim incident. Rathee was declared brought dead upon arrival at Brahma Shakti Sanjeevani Hospital after suffering significant blood loss. Two other victims are battling life-threatening injuries in the ICU, suffering wounds to major parts of their body including shoulder, thigh, and chest.
The murder has instilled fear and raised questions about the law and order situation in Haryana. The Chief Minister of Haryana, Manohar Lal Khattar, assured that the culprits won’t be spared and instructed an immediate arrest. Meanwhile, a murder case has been filed against BJP leader Naresh Kaushik, Bahadurgarh municipal corporation chairperson Saroj Rathi’s relatives, among others. Police officers, led by Senior Officer Arpit Jain, have been deployed to apprehend the killers, with five teams actively searching for clues. The opposition has criticized the state government’s handling of security matters, with INLD’s Abhay Chautala emphasizing the lack of provided security for Rathee, despite previous requests.