PHAGWARA: Tension gripped Darvesh village near Phagwara after two unidentified masked assailants opened fire at the residence of AAP leader and Yudh Nasheya Virudh Phagwara Coordinator, Daljit Raju, shortly after 1:13 AM on the intervening night of November 26–27. The attackers fired an estimated 23–24 rounds, shattering the quiet of the village and causing widespread panic among residents.
According to Raju, he, his wife, and their young daughter were asleep on the first floor when the volley of bullets struck the glass railings and windowpanes of the upper floor. Although the family escaped unhurt, the gunfire jolted them awake. Raju reported seeing two masked men outside, armed with pistols or revolvers, shooting at his house from close range before fleeing under the cover of darkness.
CCTV footage retrieved from the premises shows the assailants arriving on a motorcycle with covered faces. They parked the vehicle near the village’s main gate and approached the house on foot. One of them was captured on camera throwing a four-page document inside the compound. The papers carried a threatening message demanding ₹5 crore, purportedly from the Kala Rana Group, indicating a possible extortion attempt.
Raju told the police he had no personal enmity and suspected the attack was carried out by criminal elements seeking to intimidate him. Empty cartridges were recovered from the scene.
Police were alerted immediately, and two SHOs reached the site within minutes. By early morning, Phagwara SP Madhvi Sharma and DSP Bharat Bhushan had inspected the residence and met the shaken family. Subsequently, senior leaders including MP Dr. Raj Kumar Chabbewal and Halka Incharge Harnoor Singh Maan also visited the spot to express solidarity.
An FIR has been registered at PS Satnampura under sections 125, 308(5), 61(2), 324(4), 111 of BNS 2023, along with provisions of the Arms Act, 1959. SP Madhvi Sharma confirmed to the media that preliminary investigations established that 23–24 rounds were fired by the two unknown assailants. Police are examining CCTV footage from surrounding areas to trace the suspects, while multiple angles—extortion, gang activity, and targeted intimidation—are being probed.