Gangster Tajpuria killed in Tihar jail over rival Gogi's 2021 murder

Jailed gangster Sunil Baliyan, better known as Tillu Tajpuria (33), was murdered inside his Tihar prison cell early on Tuesday by four inmates who are allegedly members of the criminal group earlier led by his rival Gogi, in an elaborately planned operation that underlined the frail state of security in India's largest prison.

- Karn Pratap Singh

The vicious murder - the second in the prison complex in just 18 days - comes roughly a year-and-a-half after members of Tillu's gang shot Gogi dead in a sensational killing inside a Rohini courtroom, and marks a key turning point in one of Delhi's most brutal gang rivalries.

One undertrial was injured during the attack as he tried to save Tillu, and is being treated in hospital, said the police, adding that the four assailants made a second attack on the gangster minutes after the first "to make sure he was dead", even as he was surrounded by security personnel. The four were booked for murder, attempt to murder and common intention.

Tillu was moved from Mandoli jail to a high-risk ward in Tihar just a month ago, said prison officers. He inhabited a cell alone on the ground floor in Tihar's jail number 8 and 9, they added. The plan unfolded at 6am on Tuesday, a time when prisoners are allowed to step out of their cells.

Deepak Dabas (30), Rajesh Bawania (42), Yogesh (31) and Riyaz Khan (39) were imprisoned in a cell on the first floor of the same ward. Each floor, except the ground, is cordoned off by iron bars to prevent prisoners on one floor from entering another.

According to a preliminary probe, the four pried open the iron bars over several days to avoid being noticed. They also ripped out one of the bars, which they would later use as a weapon to attack Tillu. Then, they used a bedsheet to slide down to the ground floor on Tuesday morning.

Tillu was still in his cell, though the gate was unlocked, said police.

"They rushed into Tillu's cell and stabbed him several times with improvised weapons, like knives made from broken spoons," said Delhi prisons chief Sanjay Baniwal.

When Tillu realised they were coming, he tried to keep his cell door shut and was helped by another undertrial, Rohit. However, the four assailants overpowered the two and stabbed Tillu at least 100 times, said the police.