Faridabad/New Delhi: Haryana Congress leader Vikas Chaudhary was shot dead in broad daylight by unknown assailants here on Thursday, police said.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi condemned the killing and said it reflects the deteriorating law-and-order situation in the state.
Chaudhary, a spokesperson of the state Congress, was parking his car outside a gym in sector nine here when the assailants fired 12-15 bullets at the vehicle from two sides, killing him on the spot, ACP Jaiveer Singh Rathi said.
Upon hearing the noise, people rushed to the site and Chaudhary was rushed to Sarvodaya hospital where he was declared brought dead, he said.
Rathi said the whole incident was caught on CCTV camera and 12 spent cartridges were recovered from the crime scene.
He further said the attack appears to be pre-planned and the assailants, who came in a vehicle, knew that Chaudhary would come to the gym.
The Congress leader was alone at the time of the incident and the bullets hit him in the neck and chest, Rathi said.
The body was handed over to Chaudhary's family after post-mortem, he added.
A murder case has been registered and police are scanning the CCTV footage to identify the accused, the officer said, adding, several police teams have also been formed to search for them.
Vikas was active on Twitter and his final tweets were retweets of posts criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi for downplaying the Jharkhand lynching. He had also earlier retweeted Simi Garewal on the growing prevalence of lynch mobs, communal attacks and rape in India.
In his last personal tweet, Vikas criticized Prime Minister Modi’s farmer subsidy schemes. "9811 farmers insured under the 'Prime Minister's Crop Insurance Scheme' are going door to door to get their compensation, while the chief minister makes false claims that they are happy. False Promises, Innumerable Deceptions, False Propaganda Such is the BJP government of the state".
Congress condemns killing
The Congress on Thursday condemned the killing, saying the law and order situation in the state has been deteriorating under the Bharatiya Janata Party rule.
Chaudhary, 42, who was considered close to state Congress Chief Ashok Tanwar, was shot dead by two assailants outside a gym in Faridabad on Thursday. He was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared him dead.
Rahul Gandhi tweeted in Hindi, "The killing of Congress spokesperson and leader Vikas Chaudhary in Faridabad is a condemnable, shameful and tragic incident. It reflects the deteriorating law-and-order situation in Haryana. May Chaudharuy's soul rest in peace and may God provide his family the strength to bear this loss."
Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala blamed Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar for the rise in crimes in the state and asked for his resignation.
"There should be an independent inquiry of the murder and the culprits should be given serious punishment," Surjewala tweeted.
