Gurugram model murder case: SIT formed, Divya Pahuja’s body not found yet

Our Correspondent

Gurugram, January 5

A three-member special investigation team (SIT) led by ACP (Crime) Varun Dahiya has been formed to investigate the murder of ex-model Divya Pahuja, whose body is still missing.

It has been revealed that suspect Balraj Gill, who had transported Divya’s body in a BMW car and is still on the run, was also present at the hotel, along with Abhijeet, the prime suspect. A CCTV camera installed at the hotel captured the two suspects with Divya at the reception.

Meanwhile, the police have also taken note of the allegations regarding the role of gangster Sandeep Gadoli’s family and jailed gangster Binder Gujjar in the murder.

A senior police officer said Gill was present at the hotel before he drove away with Divya’s body in the car.

DCP (Crime) Vijay Pratap Singh said Abhijeet claims that Divya was blackmailing him, following which he killed her. “We are verifying his statements,” the DCP added.

“We are also interrogating Hemraj and Om Prakash to weave in the elements to understand the matter in detail. Divya’s mobile phone has also been sent to a lab for testing. Our teams are conducting raids and we are hopeful that the deceased’s body would be recovered soon,” said DCP Singh.

Meanwhile, in a series of claims and counterclaims, Gadoli’s cousin Jyotsana Gulia has suspected the involvement of jailed gangster Binder Gujjar and the Gurugram police in her murder. It came after Divya’s sister Naina claimed that Gadoli’s sister and brother had killed the model. Jyotsana said her family had nothing to do with the murder.

She said the allegations regarding the involvement of her family members in the case were baseless. After Gadoli’s death, they were only involved in a legal battle for justice, she added.

“Gadoli’s encounter in February 2016 was a planned murder by Gujjar and the Gurugram police. Divya and Gadoli were not in a relationship... rather, he was honey-trapped with her help. When the duo was on their way to Mumbai, Divya had shared their location on social media. Soon, teams of the Gurugram police were following her and shot Gadoli in a hotel room. It was a fake encounter and the trial in the case had started in 2020. Gujjar and police officials involved in the encounter are still in jail,” said Jyotsana.

“I think Gujjar and the Gurugram police had conspired to kill Divya. The hotel where she was killed had 39 rooms in all, but the police checked only one room — 114. It appears that the police helped Abhijeet, a close aide of gangster Binder and prime accused in Divya’s murder, to shift her body to a safe place. Our family has no role in her murder,” said Jyotsana.

Meanwhile, questions are also being raised over the lack of action by the Gurugram police to nab the suspects. Despite being informed in time, the police failed to nab the suspects, who fled with the deceased’s body in the car.

The police had recovered the BMW car in Patiala in Punjab, 38 hours after the crime took place. However, the body was not in the car.

Prime suspect Abhijeet Singh revealed that Divya was shot dead in the hotel at 5 pm on January 2. Shortly after that, Abhijeet phoned Anup for help, following which the latter informed the police about the murder at 9 pm. A police team reached the hotel and checked room No. 114, while the body was lying in room No. 111.

Taking advantage of the situation, Abhijeet took the body and kept it in his car. Later, he handed the vehicle over to his friends Balraj Gill and Ravi Bandra, who took away it with Divya’s body. Around 11 pm, Anup again informed the police about the murder, following which the police took a serious note of it. By then, Gill and Bandra had fled with the body.

‘Gangster behind murder’

In a series of claims and counterclaims, Gadoli’s cousin Jyotsana Gulia has suspected the involvement of jailed gangster Binder Gujjar and the Gurugram police in the murder. It came after Divya Pahuja’s sister Naina had claimed that Gadoli’s sister and brother had killed the model. Jyotsana said her family had nothing to do with the case. She said the allegations regarding the involvement of her family members in the case were baseless.

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