Rocky Yadav, Bihar MLC's murderer son, is a gun-crazy man

NEW DELHI: A cursory glance at Rakesh Ranjan Yadav alias Rocky's profile on social network will give anyone the impression that he is a gun-toting man with little respect for the law. Arrested by Bihar Police for brazenly gunning down a 19-year-old youth who overtook his Range Rover SUV in Gaya, his love for guns can be seen splashed all over his Facebook profile.

On August 11, 2015, Rocky uploaded a picture of him dressed in a blue T-shirt and trousers. The picture, captioned "testing the new ones", showed him holding a pistol and a revolver in his hands. A month later, he uploaded a picture showing a cache of assault rifles.

A "certified shooter", Rocky made his passion public in October 2013 by putting up a picture of him firing a rifle, this time legally at a shooting range. When a friend commented who he was aiming for, Rocky had replied "target". Three years later, the concept of target for this budding neta seems to have changed. Rocky got his arms licence from Delhi Police on June 11, 2013.

He had submitted a "renowned shooter" certificate from National Rifles Association of India, which comes under the Union sports ministry, and was granted the licence under sports quota.

Sources in the licencing wing of Delhi Police said Rocky had participated in "big bore" events for three years at the national level and shotgun events at the state level. His licence was recommended for an all-India permit as per home ministry's standing committee's directives for the "renowned shooter" category.

While in Delhi, Rocky had stayed in C9-Block of Vasant Kunj in south Delhi. His Facebook pictures of that time show him as a party-loving man. He uploaded pictures sitting in pubs with people giving comments like "Netaji Zindabad".

When TOI visited the rented flat, his landlady said he created nuisance all the time. The neighbours recalled how Rocky brought women to his flat frequently and his servants roamed around in undergarments. Men resembling goons visited him often and the landlady had to warn him a number of times to mend his ways.

Delhi Police has suspended his gun licence. "Once we get a request from Bihar Police, we will serve him a show-cause notice asking why his licence should not be cancelled given his involvement in a violent crime. If the department is not satisfied with his reply, we will cancel it," said an officer at the licencing branch in Defence Colony.