Delhi: Bikers shoot at film producer

NEW DELHI: A Karol Bagh-based film producer has alleged that he was shot at twice by unidentified bikers on Deshbandhu Gupta Road in central Delhi early Monday. The bullets, however, missed him and shattered the windowpane of his car and passed through the rear door. Police have recovered only one cartridge of 9mm calibre and one exit spot from the producer’s car.
The incident has sent the cops into a tizzy as the victim, Hardev Singh Sethi, has alleged in the FIR that actor Salman Khan’s business manager Reshma Shetty and the actor himself could be behind the shootout.
Responding to the allegations, Reshma Shetty said, “This is a sham and a fraud. I do not know any Hardev Singh. His wife and daughter have made accusations against me and even threatened me in the past. I have lodged a police complaint against them on August 29 and the Mumbai Police is on the lookout for them.”
The producer’s daughter and wife had come in the news after they created ruckus outside Salman Khan’s Bandra residence in Mumbai last month and were booked by the police.
In August, the producer’s wife Jasmeet and daughter Amrita, who claim to run a film production house, Tons Productions, alleged that they wanted to sign actor Salman Khan to do a special song in a film being made to launch Amrita as an actor. Amrita alleged that Salman’s business manager Reshma Shetty demanded Rs 10 lakh for a meeting with the actor.
DCP (central) Alok Kumar told TOI that they have registered a case for attempt to murder (Section 307 of IPC) and Arms Act and are probing all angles in the shootout. Cops have retrieved two crucial CCTV footages of the route taken by Sethi. A team is analyzing them to ascertain the exact sequence of events that led to the shootout. Cops are also trying to corroborate Sethi’s version with that of the trajectory of the bullet and other evidences. A team of forensic experts has also examined the car.
The incident took place around 6.30am on New Rohtak road, barely 400 meters from Karol Bagh and DBG road police stations located opposite each other. Sethi in his statement told police that he had left his Rajouri Garden house around 5.45am in his Toyota Corolla car to reach his shop Gurmukh Tyres on DCM road.
“I was driving when two men on two bikes began to trail my car from Jakhira flyover. When I reached near Jeewan Mala hospital, the bikers overtook my car and opened fire. As I ducked, the bullet smashed the glasses of my car after which the bikers fled,” he said.
Police have formed several teams to nab the shooters. Speaking to TOI, Sethi alleged this was the second attempt on his life. “On September 9, two men had approached me on Linking Road in Mumbai and threatened to kill me if I came to the city to pursue the case on September 21. I also received some threat calls after that,” Sethi said.