NEW DELHI, Sept. 27 — A 55-year-old property dealer was killed during his morning walk in a south Delhi park Friday after two men attacked him with a cricket bat and then shot him, police said.
The victim, identified as Lakhpat Singh Kataria alias Lucky Kataria, a resident of Begumpur, was attacked around 9.30 a.m. inside Vijay Mandal Park. Police said the assailants fired three rounds before fleeing on a motorcycle. Kataria was taken to AIIMS Trauma Centre in a conscious state but later succumbed to bullet injuries.
“At 9.53 a.m., we received a call about firing near Vijay Mandal Park. A police team rushed to the scene and found that a morning walker had been shot dead by two unidentified men,” deputy commissioner of police (south) Ankit Chauhan said. “As per preliminary investigation, the men first assaulted Kataria with a bat and then shot him.”
Investigators are probing multiple angles, including personal enmity and a property dispute. Kataria’s relatives told police he had an altercation with a group of people in nearby Indira Camp over alleged encroachment. His brother-in-law Prem Singh said, “We suspect the murder is linked to that fight.”
Police believe the crime was premeditated, noting that the attackers bought a cricket bat from a shop near the park before waiting for Kataria to arrive. A guard on duty told another guard, Devendra Singh, that “three bullets were fired at Lucky Kataria, who came daily for a morning walk.”
Relatives also pointed to Kataria’s political affiliations. CP Soni, a self-identified national coordinator in the Congress, said, “Kataria was an active Congress member for years. The murder of a party worker in daylight shows the city’s law and order has collapsed. The killers are still at large.”
The crime drew political reactions. Former AAP legislator Somnath Bharti wrote on X, “Now morning walk is also not safe in Delhi? This park is visited by thousands every day… If even now Delhi can’t be secured qua crime, then what more power is BJP to be given? Delhi is becoming worse in crime with every passing day.”
The Delhi Development Authority-managed Vijay Mandal Park, spread over 46 acres, is a busy spot for walkers in the morning and evening. This is the second murder reported inside the park since July 2023, when a 22-year-old woman was killed with an iron rod by her cousin after she refused a marriage proposal.
Police said teams are scanning CCTV footage and questioning suspects in the area.
