S S Namdhari named Main Accused in the Ponty Chadha Murder Case

Delhi Police has charged Uttarakhand minorities commission’s sacked chairman S.S. Namdhari and other accused with murder, conspiracy, kidnapping and destruction of evidence in the murder case of liquor baron Ponty Chadha and his brother Hardeep.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Mukesh Kumar, taking cognizance of the charge sheet, issued production warrants against Namdhari and 10 other accused for Feb 19.

The Delhi Police filed the charge sheet against Namdhari, his personal security officer Sachin Tyagi and 20 others in the case related to the murder of the Chadhas in a shootout here last year.

Namdhari and the others were charge-sheeted for offences of murder, attempt to murder, conspiracy, kidnapping, illegal confinement, trespass, destruction of evidence under the Indian Penal Code, and also under the provisions of the Arms Act.

Ponty Chadha and his brother were killed at a farmhouse in Chhattarpur in south Delhi in a shootout Nov 17, 2012, allegedly over a property dispute.

There are 110 prosecution witnesses in the case. Out of 22 accused, the Crime Branch had arrested Namdhari, Tyagi and nine others for their alleged role in the case.

Police Feb 15 had told the court that they have arrested one more person, Narinder Ahlawat in the case.

On Friday, the court had expressed displeasure at the Delhi Police for not filing the charge sheet and directed it to do so by Saturday, as the mandatory 90-day period to file the chargesheet would have expired Feb 17.

Ponty Chadha’s aides Bhupender Singh, Uday Raj Singh, Rajpal Singh, Anand Singh Bisht, Mathura Singh Mehra and Satnam Singh are also accused in the case.

Namdhari’s men Simranjeet Singh and Jagbir Singh have also been booked by police for allegedly helping him in the commission of the crime.