DNA Micro Edit: Gangwars once again gain pace in the national capital

Despite regular denials by the Delhi police on the existence of organised crime or gangwars in the national capital, recent incidents involving gangsters suggest a different picture. The fight for availability of land, water, electricity, etc has over decades snowballed into gangwars. Now its upto Delhi Police to plan how to curb the violence and menace created by these notorious groups.

While property disputes and land grabbing have been the epicenter of such gang battles in southwest Delhi, killing dozens in the past, north and northeastern parts of the capital are yet to cope up with the issue of illegal construction and auto thefts, which have given rise to a number of gangs, with juveniles as main players. Moreover, in south and southeast Delhi, the gangs of pickpockets and snatchers who ruled the street-crime few decades ago, have now matured to water mafias and gangs regulating organised betting rackets.

Further, there is no dearth of hideouts for the gang mafias. Instead of proving to be a deterrence to crime or rehabilitation center for the criminals, Tihar jail, over time, has ironically emerged as a control room from where the godfathers of such gangs have been safely overseeing their operations. Most of the strategies are planned and directed by these kingpins via phones, from inside the jail.

Jail officers say that dismantled phones, drugs, prohibited medicines, weed, tobacco, etc are regularly flung inside the jail premises from the roads adjacent to their boundary walls. However, efforts are made to stop such practices, but a blanket ban is yet to be witnessed.