A Nepalese national carrying a ₹1 lakh bounty on his head was allegedly shot dead in an encounter with the Gurgaon and Delhi Police late Monday night at Aastha Kunj Park in the national capital.
Bhim Mahabadur Jora, the bounty, was wanted in multiple cases, including the brutal murder of 63-year-old general physician Dr. Yogesh Chandra Paul in Delhi’s Jangpura in May 2024, and a recent ₹20 lakh burglary at the residence of BJP Mehrauli District Vice-President Mamta Bharadwaj in Gurgaon’s Sector 49 on October 2.
The operation, led by DCP (Crime) Rajesh Kumar Phogat and ACP (Crime) Lalit Dalal, happened after a months-long chase for the leader of a notorious Nepali gang behind an array of thefts and murders across India.
Police said that Jora’s name surfaced as the mastermind in the Gurgaon theft after investigators apprehended one of his accomplices. Teams from Gurgaon and Delhi joined forces for Monday’s operation.
Gurgaon Inspector narrowly escaped death as a bullet struck his vest
Inspector Narendra Sharma, who was part of the Gurgaon Crime Branch team, narrowly escaped injury when a bullet fired by Jora struck his bulletproof jacket. “Acting on a tip-off that Jora was in Aastha Kunj Park with an accomplice, the Gurgaon Crime Branch, Sector 43, team coordinated with personnel from the Delhi Police’s Amar Colony Police Station,” Sharma told The Indian Express.
“A special team led by Inspector Rajendra Gagar of Delhi’s Operation Midnight Special Staff, under DCP (South East) Hemant Tiwari, joined the operation. As the police approached, Jora opened fire, prompting a retaliatory response in which he was fatally injured. He was rushed to the AIIMS Trauma Centre, but was declared dead. An accomplice who was with him escaped.”
Police sources said Constable Rohit Balauria from the Gurgaon Crime Branch played a huge role in tracking Jora, who had been absconding for 17 months. The gang leader had also been wanted in several cases across Surat (2014), Karnataka (2022), and Ghaziabad (2022).
The Delhi Police had earlier announced a ₹1 lakh cash reward and a one-rank promotion for officers involved in his capture. Gurgaon Police recently arrested three members of the same Nepali gang for operating under fake identities.
