NOIDA: A 24-year-old Gurgaon resident, a lawyer by profession, was arrested on Wednesday for firing shots from a wedding procession in Noida that led to the death of a two-year-old boy. Three police teams are still on the lookout for a second accused in the case. Deepanshu, police said, is the groom’s friend and was perched on the main buggy next to him while firing into the air as a mark of celebration as the baraat made its way through Aghapur village in Noida’s Sector 41 on Sunday. DCP (Noida) Rambadan Singh said the accused was arrested near Sector 47 following a tip-off. Cops recovered a pistol from his possession, but it was not immediately clear if the bullet, which had pierced the child’s head, was fired by Deepanshu. The pistol will now be sent for forensic analysis, the officer said.
During interrogation, the accused claimed he did not remember most of the details of the evening but said he fired many rounds in the air. Police said he claimed to be drunk at the time and had bought a gun to “commemorate” the event and flaunt it as a show of power. He hid at a relative’s place in Gurgaon and kept changing locations within the city. A resident of DLF phase 3, Deepanshu started practising in the Gurgaon district court after completing his graduation last year from a private university in Greater Noida. Meanwhile, police are on the lookout for Happy, the other man who was firing from the buggy during the wedding procession. “Teams are conducting searches in Gurgaon, Delhi, Noida and other possible hideouts for Happy,” additional DCP Sumit Shukla said. Happy, police said, is also a resident of DLF Phase 3. Earlier, police detained the groom’s father and maternal uncle for questioning.
Two-year-old Ansh was on his father’s lap on the third-floor balcony of their house overlooking the road in Theeke Wali Gali when a bullet fired by the two baraatis hit him in the head. The boy was rushed to Prayag Hospital, about 2km away, but bled to death. An FIR was filed against Happy and Deepanshu under BNS section 105 (Culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and Section 30 (contravention of licence or rule) of the Arms Act, 1959 on a complaint filed by Ansh’s father Vikas Sharma. On Wednesday, he told TOI, “In a split second, everything has changed for the family. They say the safest place for a child is their parent’s arms. But Ansh died in my arms. I have full faith in the police and judiciary. I just want justice for my son. The second person should also be arrested at the earliest.”
