When The Indian Express took the route, the road had streetlights, all unlit, erected on the divider, but it was illuminated by the light emitted by vehicles and shops. (Express Photo by Abhinav Saha)
A thin layer of smog had descended on Kanjhawala road, diminishing the visibility of the already dimly lit stretch, at 7 pm on Monday, a day after 20-year-old Anjali Singh was killed when her scooter was hit by a car, which dragged her for several kilometres.
When The Indian Express took the route, the road had streetlights, all unlit, erected on the divider, but it was illuminated by the light emitted by vehicles and shops. A little further, yellow lights dotted the right side of the road. A few metres from there, the stretch becomes lively, with streetlights on the divider, but CCTVs were largely absent. The road was uneven and riddled with potholes, clogged by vehicles during the rush hour.
The area from Begumpur Chowk again descended into darkness for more than a kilometre, even with a Delhi Jal Board project taking place in the middle of the road, and boards and barricades bearing its name propped up every 100 metres. The road was dug up with concrete structures demarcating the stone-strewn part. In some parts on the Kanjhawala stretch, where the woman was dragged, were large rocks and pieces of concrete.
Anjali’s death begs the question: Where were the police?
On the most intensely patrolled night of the year, with roughly 18,000 police and security personnel on the streets for New Year’s Eve, it took almost two hours between the first PCR call and 20-year-old Anjali Singh’s body being found. During this duration, approximately five PCR calls were made, and the body was dragged over 10 km between Sultanpuri and Kanjhawala in Outer Delhi.
Officers said the woman’s body was dragged under the car, occupied by five men in their 20s, for almost an hour as the accused kept taking rounds in Kanjhawala. Police sources also said they are probing if Anjali was accompanied by a pillion rider when her scooter was hit.
Deepak Dahiya, one of the eyewitnesses who called police, said, “It was horrible. I was outside my shop when I heard a noise and saw the body being dragged under the car. I shouted at the accused but nobody stopped. They were taking U-turns. I called police and chased the men but they were playing loud music.”
