As per police, Lakshay’s friend, who is now a murder suspect, allegedly told the police that the men had a fight in Bhiwani after which they left for Panipat together. At Panipat, the fight escalated and the accused allegedly attacked Lakshay and threw him in the canal.
On the intervening night of January 25 and 26, 24-year-old Lakshay Chauhan, an advocate and the son of an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), left his Delhi home for Bhiwani in Haryana with his two friends to attend a wedding. When he did not return the day after, his father filed a missing persons complaint.
Police questioned one of the two friends, also a lawyer, and said that they found inconsistencies in his statements. The friend has now been detained as police suspect that he, along with the other friend, allegedly killed Lakshay after a fight in Panipat and threw his body in a canal. Police teams have been deployed in Delhi’s Rohini and Haryana’s Panipat to search the Munak Canal and locate the body.
The other friend, meanwhile, is said to be on the run. According to sources, Lakshay and his two friends – an advocate and a court clerk — left their houses between Sunday and Monday to attend the wedding. When Lakshay did not return the next day, and the day after, his father Yashpal Chauhan, the ACP (Operations) with the Delhi Police, lodged a missing persons report.
“Several searches were made around the wedding area and in Delhi but Lakshay wasn’t found. We then contacted one of his friends but he was giving different statements each time. We detained him for questioning and he later confessed to the crime,” said the source.
As per police, Lakshay’s friend, who is now a murder suspect, allegedly told the police that the men had a fight in Bhiwani after which they left for Panipat together. At Panipat, the fight escalated and the accused allegedly attacked Lakshay and threw him in the canal. It is not yet clear why the three men took a detour to Panipat. Police said multiple teams are looking for Lakshay’s body.
The second friend, a clerk, is said to be on the run.
Police said his family couldn’t be contacted either. The three men had been friends for years as they worked at the same court. Police are yet to register a murder case as they are still looking for the body. As of now, only a kidnapping case has been registered. The suspect lawyer, who has been detained, is being further interrogated about the motive and sequence of events. As per police, Lakshay’s friends left his body in the canal and fled to Delhi.
Advertisement
The Indian Express tried to reach ACP Yashpal but his friends said the officer doesn’t wish to comment on the matter. DCP (Outernorth) Ravi Kumar Singh said, “A missing report was filed on Tuesday night at 11.20 pm on the complaint of Yashpal Singh (ACP/Ops Outer North District) about his son Lakshay Chauhan being missing since Monday. During the inquiry, it was found that Lakshay was last seen at Karnal Bypass and later, it was found that he had gone to Haryana with two known people to attend some function. During the investigation, 3-4 suspected persons have been detained and are being interrogated. Further investigation is in progress to trace the abducted person.”
