Willful default

 A shooting incident at Delhi on Friday morning has exposed alarming loopholes in the security system when dreaded gangster Jitendra Gogi was shot dead in a broad daylight inside Rohini courtroom by hired assassins of a rival gang. Jitendra Mann alias Gogi’s old enemy Sunil alias Tillu is lodged in Mandoli jail itself. According to various reports, the conspiracy was hatched days ago, to kill Gogi from inside Delhi’s Mandoli Jail. Tillu Tajpuria is lodged in the High-Risk Ward of Mandoli Jail and many of Tillu’s henchmen are also lodged in this jail. Police also learnt about the gang rivalry and the extreme possibility of a shootout. According to reports, Gogi was being produced to court for a hearing when the two assassins, dressed in lawyer’s cloaks whipped out pistols and pumped several bullets into the gangster. The shooters are alleged to be members of the gang led by his friend-turned-rival Sunil Maan, also known as Tillu Tajpuriya. It may be pointed out that there was heavy police security provided to the gangster as his life was under threat allegedly by the rival gang. The two assassins, in the garb of lawyers, were also killed by police while an intern was also injured. Media reports pointed out that the incident is not the first inside a courtroom in Delhi. In the recent past, there have been incidents of shooting in the Dwarka Court, a firing near the Saket Court in May 2019 and earlier in 2017, an under trial was killed after being shot inside the Rohini Court Complex. A shocking incident similar in line to the incident in Rohini Court was the killing of a Delhi Police head constable when four armed assailants open fired inside a courtroom at Karkardooma Court Complex in the year 2015. On Friday, the ease with which the two assailants entered into the court premises in the attire shows that they were well aware that it is easy to get access into the court by wearing lawyer’s attire. It is baffling that a highly reputed police like Delhi Police with highly trained manpower and led by the finest of police officers in the country, could not even prevent the most likely of incidents. If Gogi was under threat and his security cover beefed up; it is then expected that even the route inside the building which the gangster and the securitymen would be taking should be sealed. There should have been check on the identities of those who were to be inside the court room and not to speak of the normal frisking that ought to have been done. Since the lapses were too glaring, it is doubtful whether the killing could have been undertaken without the involvement of some people having connections with powerful persons. Delhi police is under the home ministry with Rakesh Asthana as commissioner of police. Such a shocking incident can happen only in Al Capone’s time. However, the fact that such killings inside courts happen in the national capital, reveals that the Central home ministry is unable to tackle law and order. Had such incident happened in any north eastern state, the Centre would have roasted the state government. Since there is suspicion of nexus between criminal dons and political mafias, it is hope the Supreme Court will order a probe over which it will monitor to unearth and expose the dirt hidden inside.