Indian National Lok Dal's Haryana unit president Nafe Singh Rathee was killed after unidentified gunmen ambushed his SUV at Bahadurgarh in Jhajjar district on Sunday evening.
A party worker, who was travelling with Rathee, also lost his life in the attack, while two others suffered serious injuries.
The attack that came ahead of the Lok Sabha elections has triggered a political storm, with the opposition Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party targeting the Manohar Lal Khattar government over the law and order situation.
The miscreants came in a car and fired indiscriminately at Rathee’s vehicle near the railway crossing at Bahadurgarh, reports said. The injured have been shifted to the Brahm Shakti Sanjivani hospital for treatment.
#WATCH | Bahadurgarh: Visuals from the spot where an alleged attack on Haryana INLD chief Nafe Singh Rathee took place.
— ANI (@ANI) February 25, 2024
Jhajjar SP Arpit Jain says, "We received information regarding an incident of firing. CIA and STF teams are working. The accused will be arrested soon..." pic.twitter.com/ttDADxuLef
“Former MLA Nafe Singh and another person Jaikishan were brought dead. They were shot in the neck, back, and shoulder. Multiple wounds suggest there were multiple rounds of fire. Sudden major vessel damage causes heavy blood loss and, eventually, a heart attack,” said Dr Manish Sharma at the BSS hospital.
The police have launched an investigation into the incident.
INLD leader Abhay Chautala alleged that the government had failed to provide security to Rathee, though there had been a threat to his life.
"The two-time MLA, who is our state unit chief, was not provided with security. In writing, representations had been made to senior police officers and the state home minister that he was facing threats and should be provided with security," he told news agency PTI.
Chautala also demanded the resignation of the chief minister and the home minister.
Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said the incident reflected the law and order situation in the state.
"The news of INLD State President Shri Nafe Singh Rathi being shot dead in Haryana is very sad. This reflects the law and order of the state. This incident made it clear that law and order has become bankrupt. Today no one is feeling safe in the state,” he wrote on X.
