Delhi 'vigilantes' part of new gang in Najafgarh?

NEW DELHI: Suspicions raised by the police over the “vigilante gang” that struck twice in two days to be working at the behest of criminal gangs seem to be turning into reality. Cops said that family feuds over possession of land could have led to fresh rounds of gang wars brewing in areas around Najafgarh.
With leaders of the bigger gangs either jailed or killed by their rivals, police suspect the murders to be a fight for supremacy.However, the worrying factor is that the rival gangs have been targeting each other’s family members, who are soft targets. Officers said that women and children have been the worst-affected in this bloodbath.
The self-claimed vigilante group could be one of the gangs trying to make a mark. The eight murders that they claim to having committed in Delhi and Gurgaon since last year seem targeted at eliminating rivalries. The gang leader has been identified as Rajesh Bhatti.
Sources said Bhatti is an associate of Gurgaon-based gangster Rajesh Kaushal. Bhatti had recruited four people — Umesh, Mannu, Sonu and a suspected juvenile — to fight his battle for supremacy.
Bhatti had even attacked his father in Gurgaon after he suspected him of having an illicit affair. Sources added that he had also accused Vikas (32), the man who was shot dead on Monday in Dwarka, of having an affair with one of his family members. This, perhaps, led to the killing. The attack on two bikers in Kanjhawala on Tuesday occurred after the two-wheeler brushed against the car of the gang members.
The gang has committed eight murders using the same modus operandi. Sources said that they pose as vigilantes to terrorise their rivals and their family members. Cops suspect that the car used for committing the crimes could be stolen.
Old hands in Delhi Police said that the gang wars that had been happening since the early 90s, with rival groups trying to control land, was subdued after a series of arrests in the past two years.
However, the flipside of this action was that it created grounds for new criminals to step into the boots of the former gangsters. Upcoming gang lords have been offering protection to landowners for a fee and a share in the real estate pie.
The new gangs have started hiring contract killers for settling their disputes since it keeps them off the hook of the cops. The killers are former members of the gangs that operated in the 90s or early 2000s seeking an opportunity to take revenge, sources said.