India: Woman shot at inside Saket court in Delhi, rushed to hospital

A woman was shot at inside Saket Court in south Delhi on Friday morning, police said.

A police official said the woman was injured in her abdomen and a hand and has been rushed to a hospital while the accused managed to flee.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) Chandan Chowdhary said the incident occurred around 10.30am.

“M Radha, aged over 40, received two bullet injuries — in her abdomen and hand. She was taken to Max Hospital in Saket and her condition is stated to be stable.

“The accused has been identified. He had lodged a case under IPC Section 420 (cheating) against the victim and advocate Rajendra Jha,” Chowdhary said.

The hearing in the case was scheduled on Friday, police said.

According to a source, the accused was an advocate who was earlier suspended by the Saket Court Bar Association. He had allegedly loaned Rs2.5 million on interest to the woman and she was defaulting on repayment, the source said.

According to an eyewitness account, the accused fired four to five times before escaping through the canteen’s back entry, the DCP said, adding that the situation in the court is normal.

Saket Court Bar Association president Vinod Sharma condemned the incident, saying no person should take the law into his hand, and people in the legal profession should especially ensure that.

Sharma confirmed that the accused advocate’s membership was suspended by the Saket Court Bar Association.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter saying that the law and order situation in the national capital has completely broken down.

“The law and order situation in Delhi has completely broken down. Instead of obstructing the work of others and doing dirty politics on everything, everyone should focus on their own work.

“If one cannot handle it, they should resign and let someone else take care of it. The safety of the people cannot be left to God’s will,” he tweeted in Hindi.

Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj attacked Lieutenant-Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena over the incident.

“The LG has only two jobs — Police and the DDA. After the arrival of the new LG sir, the law and order situation in Delhi is getting worse. Guns are being fired in courts. The police are involved in Rs3.50 billion corruption,” he tweeted in Hindi.

In 2021, jailed gangster Jitendra Gogi was shot dead by two men posing as lawyers inside a crowded Rohini courtroom.

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