New Delhi: A clear link has surfaced between the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and the murder of Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena chief Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi in broad daylight, ThePrint has learnt. It is also learnt that officers in the Punjab Police had written to their counterparts in Rajasthan earlier highlighting a threat to Gogamedi’s life from Bishnoi.
Officers of the Rajasthan Police confirmed that the Facebook post taking responsibility for Gogamedi’s killing by Rohit Godara, an absconding gangster with ties to Bishnoi, appears legitimate.
Gogamedi was shot by three assailants at his residence in Jaipur, Tuesday, and later declared dead on arrival at a nearby hospital.
A senior police officer dealing with the case said there was “indeed” a sense of rivalry between Godara and Gogamedi which is “apparently” why Godara’s men opened fire at the Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena chief.
“We presume that the post claiming responsibility was authentic because there was some rivalry between him and Gogamedi but the newly-formed SIT will take a deeper look on all aspects related to the killing,” the IPS officer posted in Rajasthan said on condition of anonymity.
A second officer said Godara has been found to be involved in multiple such cases as well as drug-related cases in Haryana and Punjab, and it is probable that the rivalry could have played a role in Gogamedi’s killing.
Rajasthan Director General of Police (DGP) Umesh Mishra told ThePrint that a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted Wednesday to probe the killing. He also appealed to Gogamedi’s supporters to ensure their protests do not spiral into violence or propagation of caste enmity.
An order passed by an Inspector General-rank officer of the state Crime Branch, which ThePrint has seen, says the SIT will be led by Kailash Chandra Vishnoi, Additional Commissioner of Police, Jaipur.
The 11-member SIT comprising officers from Jaipur Commissionerate, Special Operations Group (SOG), Crime Branch and Anti Terrorist Squad, will function under “supervision” of ADG (Crime Branch) M.N. Dinesh.
“The mandate of the SIT is to investigate the case thoroughly, apprehend the culprits and bring them to justice,” DGP Mishra said.
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Threat perception
An officer aware of Gogamedi’s dealings said the chief of the breakaway faction of the Karni Sena, which led violent protests against the film Padmaavat in 2017, had sought police cover last year.
However, his request was denied based on threat perception prepared by the state intelligence department.
Another senior officer acknowledged that there were threats against Gogamedi but added that intelligence could have not given the go-ahead for police cover because he already maintained personal security.
DGP Mishra, however, said the immediate goal of the SIT is to trace and arrest the accused, and that the issue of police cover will be dealt with later on.
The internal security wing of the Punjab Police had in March this year shared an intelligence input with Rajasthan Police on Gogamedi facing threats on his life from gangster Bishnoi, it is learnt.
ThePrint has seen a copy of the note by the Special DGP in charge of Punjab Police’s internal security wing to the Rajasthan DGP, suggesting that Bishnoi through his accomplice Sampat Nehra — lodged in Bathinda central jail — has “plans” to kill Gogamedi to incite “religiously-motivated riots” in the state.
The note further detailed the threat and conveyed that Nehra had arranged an AK-47 to carry out the hit with help from his accomplices.
Asked about the note, Rajasthan DGP Umesh Mishra told ThePrint that he took cognisance of the “threat perception” shared with him and that it was sent to the state anti-terrorist squad for “necessary action”.
Who is Rohit Godara
Godara, a resident of Bikaner district, shot to fame after he took responsibility for the murder of another gangster, Raju Theth in Sikar district of Rajasthan, ThePrint had reported earlier this year.
The report had highlighted that the then Additional Director General of Police (Anti-Terrorism Squad and Special Operations Group) Ashok Rathore made a presentation on Godara, saying the gangster was suspected to be behind six of the eight extortion calls made to businessmen in the state between 21 to 23 January this year.
Godara is also one of the accused in the murder of performer Siddhu Moosewala, who was gunned down in Punjab’s Moga in 2022.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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