No arrests were made and officers said they were probing other angles as well. Eyewitnesses said the killer was waiting for Ankit outside the coaching centre.
NEW DELHI: A 31-year-old teacher was shot dead at pointblank range by a masked assailant outside his coaching centre in north Delhi’s Jahangirpuri on Monday morning.
The teacher’s family suspects it was an “honour” killing linked to his relationship with a girl from another community. The family of the victim, Ankit Kumar, said he was in love with a Muslim girl. Although both families had finally agreed to the match, the girl’s brother had remained hostile to the relationship and had been threatening him, they said. Police have detained the girl’s family and were questioning them till late on Monday.
1 A man waits outside the coaching centre and asks a student about Ankit Kumar. His face is covered with a handkerchief
No arrests were made and officers said they were probing other angles as well. Eyewitnesses said the killer was waiting for Ankit outside the coaching centre. As soon as he arrived, the assailant grabbed him by his neck and shot him twice in the head in front of two of his students. The shooter fled on foot even as the neighbours came out on hearing the gunshots. Police said the “honour” killing angle in the shooting was far from clear.
2 As soon as Kumar arrives, the man grabs him from behind, points a pistol at him and shoots him twice. He then flees on foot
Honour killing? Police yet to rule out personal enmity angle
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Police said the “honour” killing angle in the shooting was far from clear. The location of the girl’s brother has not been found at the crime scene although he has not been given a clean chit.
The role of some of his friends, who have been found to be in regular touch with him, is being probed. Police said they were yet to find any incriminating evidence against the family and that other angles were under consideration as well. “The victim had known the girl for many years.
As of now, we have not come across any communal or honour angle in the murder. We haven’t ruled out personal enmity or an illicit relationship being the cause of the crime. Ten teams have been formed and all the suspects are being questioned,” DCP (northwest) Aslam Khan said.
Cops are scanning CCTV footage of adjoining areas for clues. The two students who saw the murder have told police that they saw the man with his face covered with a handkerchief roaming around the tuition centre around 7.50am. The suspect even asked a student about ‘Ankit sir’s’ whereabouts and sat outside to wait for him. A girl had also arrived at the tuition centre, they said.
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According to Ankit’s family, he had met the girl eight years ago at the tuition centre, which was then being run by his elder brother. She was a student there. The two fell in love and have been in a relationship ever since. The families had finally agreed to get them married in December this year.
“Ankit never hid his relationship with the girl and she often visited our house even though her brother always had issues with their relationship and had warned them to stay away from each other. Despite everything, Ankit respected him and kept trying to convince him to accept the relationship. I guess the brother just got angrier with time. He is the only one we can suspect of having killed Ankit since he had no enmity with anyone,” said Jai Pravesh, Ankit’s elder brother.
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Pravesh said Ankit had started earning around Rs 1.5 lakh a month and had convinced Sana’s parents that he was now capable of taking care of her, after which they gave their nod to the relationship. They had set December 11 as the wedding day. The family claimed that the girl had even warned Ankit of a possible attack two days ago. Ankit’s friends were shocked to know about his death.
“I got to know about his death just minutes after meeting him while he was walking towards his coaching centre. I often told him that she would leave him under the pressure from her family but he was always hopeful that their relationship would work out, more so after their marriage date as finalised,” said Vishal, Ankit’s childhood friend.
Ankit taught Political Science and English at the coaching centre. The girl too had started working there as a substitute teacher for English, family members said. His students fondly remembered him as a soft spoken teacher who was always there for them even at odd hours. “On Monday too, he agreed to have the coaching centre open at 8am to teach two students who had missed out on a few lessons because of their exams,” said Shivam, a student.
