NEW DELHI:
Kishan Dev Khosla
’s
neighbours
at
M-Block
in
Greater Kailash
are in a
state of shock
as the
details
of the
gruesome murder
of the 91-year-old are coming to the fore. The accused Kishan was a known face in the area, and he would often go out of his way to help out even the neighbours. Residents now say that this could be his ploy to cover up his sinister plans.
“The incident is really shocking. I had met Khosla and Kishan just a few days ago, but it did not appear that the house help was plotting such a ghastly crime,” said Khosla’s neighbour SS Bedi.
Residents welfare associations have, meanwhile, raised concerns about the security of other senior citizens as well. A RWA member Shyam Kalra said that about 98% of the household helps do not have proper verification details. “I would blame both the residents and the police to not take this issue seriously. If a person is working at a household, his antecedents must be verified properly. I cannot understand why the police did not flag Kishan’s role in the previous cases during the verification,” added Kalra.
Cops have a bizarre justification to why Kishan’s past crimes could not be brought to the notice of Khosla family. “Cases registered against him were recorded at the Hauz Khas and Saket police stations, while the verification was conducted at CR Park. Since the checks were conducted at the local level, his previous antecedents elsewhere could not be verified,” said a police officer. Sources say that the Delhi Police lacks a software to deal with it.
Kishan, who belonged to Bihar, often told other household helps working in the area that he hailed from Uttar Pradesh. “He sounded very convincing when we spoke a few times in the past. But I never thought that he would execute such a gruesome attack,” said Tarun, who works at an office nearby.
On Tuesday, a group of residents held a candle march at the GK-II M-Block market, demanding a security review in the area.
“Last week, eight cases of burglaries and snatchings took place in the locality around CR Park and GK. They targeted elderly citizens. Police must be more active in getting antecedents of household helps verified. We are also appealing to the residents to cooperate,” said Shikar Talwar.
Police have, meanwhile, asked the residents of the area to ensure that the CCTV cameras in the colony are in working condition.