20/09/2025
Unidentified gunman kills woman from Mumbai, injures two others in Jammu
SHO among 3 cops suspended for ‘lapses in enquiry
Jammu, Sept 20: Authorities have suspended three police officers, including a Station House Officer (SHO), over alleged lapses in handling the case of a Mumbai woman’s killing and injuries to two others in the Sainik Colony area here last month.
Police sources said SHO Channi Himmat, Inspector Deepak Pathania, Incharge Police Post Sainik Colony, PSI Waseem Bhatti, and PSI Rohit Sharma have been placed under suspension after it emerged that the victim, identified as 30-year-old Mehjabeen Akil Sheikh of West Malad, Mumbai, died of bullet injuries and not from a road accident, as initially claimed.
Pertinently, on August 21, three women-Mehjabeen Akil Sheikh, her sister Fatima Akil (21), and one Jaspreet Kour (28) of Ludhiana-were brought injured to JK Medicity Hospital in Jammu by two men, Naveen Bakshi and Surinder Pal, who told doctors that the trio had been hurt in a road accident on the Ring Road.
The duo (Bakshi and Pal), sources said, run a physiotherapy centre in Sainik Colony area, where some unfair practises were also going on for the past some time under the nose of the suspended incharge Police Post and SHO concerned.
Against medical advice, sources said, the injured women were shifted to ASCOMS Batra Hospital and later to GMC Jammu, where Mehjabeen succumbed to her injuries on August 30.
Initially, police initiated inquest proceedings under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNSS) to probe the incident on the statement of the two individuals, who brought the injured women to the hospital.
However, subsequent investigations revealed that the woman had sustained a firearm injury, prompting the registration of a murder case.
Following confirmation of the gunshot wound, police registered FIR number 152/2025 under sections 103(1), 109, 332(b) of the BNSS and 3/25 Arms Act at Police Station Channi Himmat against unknown accused.
Senior officers later took serious note of the alleged delay and failure of the local police to promptly conclude that the victim had been shot, leading to the suspension of the three officials.
Meanwhile, in a statement, police clarified the sequence of events.
They said on August 21, information was received from JK Medicity Hospital about the admission of three injured women.
Accordingly, they said, an investigating officer was deputed, and doctors informed that the injured were not fit to record statements.
They said the victims were later moved to other hospitals and on August 30, Mehjabeen succumbed at GMC Jammu.
“That same day, her mother sought exemption from post-mortem through the District Magistrate’s office,” police said.
They said, the SHO, finding contradictions in her version, refused to grant exemption and referred the matter for further examination.
According to police, inquest proceedings were initiated at 2:30 AM on August 30 and a board of doctors conducted the post-mortem on August 31 in the presence of a magistrate and crime team, with videography and photography carried out.
The deceased’s clothes were seized, and the body handed over to her family after completion of legal formalities, police said.
Police said during the inquiry, CCTV footage, mobile call records (CDRs), and internet protocol detail records (IPDRs) of the deceased, injured, and their associates were collected.
“Investigators soon suspected the use of a firearm, which led to Mehjabeen’s fatal injuries,” they said.
The inquest proceedings were accordingly converted into an FIR on September 18, 2025, they said.
A team comprising forensic experts, crime photographers, videographers, a magistrate, and investigating officers visited the scene of crime and collected material evidence, police added.
They maintained that a professional approach was being adopted to explore whether a larger nexus was involved in the case.
“The investigation is continuing on its merits,” they said.
However, senior authorities held the three suspended officers responsible for lapses in timely detection of the murder and failure to reach a clear conclusion at an early stage.
Meanwhile, the identity of the unidentified gunman who killed Mehjabeen and injured the other two women remains unknown, and efforts are on to trace and arrest the culprit.–(Daily Excelsior)
