Faridabad property dealer case: SIT drops murder charge, ACP attached to HQ

In a swift turn of events, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the death of Faridabad property dealer Manoj Kumar has dropped the murder charge within 24 hours. The case now stands under culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

On Friday, ACP Rajesh Lohan, whose official Thar was involved in the incident, was relieved of his duties and attached to the DCP headquarters. A senior SIT officer said the move was taken “to ensure transparency.”

Initially, police had registered a case of culpable homicide, later upgrading it to murder following pressure from the deceased’s family. But SIT officials said the evidence did not support the murder charge. “The case was only a sudden accident. The section of murder was added under pressure from the family, but investigation does not prove it a case of murder,” the officer said.

The SIT has seized the Thar and identified the driver as Himanshu Lohan, son of ACP Sarai Rajesh Lohan. During interrogation, it was revealed Himanshu was at the wheel, with Nishant seated next to him and Keshav Chaudhary in the rear seat. A fourth youth was released after being found uninvolved.

The accused — Himanshu and Nishant, both LLB graduates, and Keshav, a PhD scholar — were produced in court on Wednesday and sent to judicial custody.

The incident occurred in the early hours of Monday when Manoj Kumar (45), of Nangla Enclave Part 2, Sector 12, was hit by the Thar. He was rushed by friends to a private hospital but succumbed to his injuries during treatment.

The FIR at Central police station was first filed under culpable homicide. Following family protests, murder charges were added but have now been rolled back.

While the case does not fall under ACP Lohan’s jurisdiction, he was relieved of duties to avoid any doubts over fairness.