‘Diwali Mubarak’, abuses, bullets: CCTV footage shows chilling details of Singapore-based executive’s murder in Faridabad

A prolonged dispute over the accused’s dog and parking arrangement turned deadly on November 6, when he allegedly shot dead his neighbour Paramjith Dhankhar.

On the night of November 6, when accused Mohan Sharma opened fire at his neighbour, Singapore-based executive Paramjith Dhankhar, following a dispute over a pet dog and parking, he allegedly wished him and his wife ‘Diwali Mubarak’ as the victim lay injured outside his home in Faridabad’s Sector 21-C.

CCTV footage shows the accused called the victim out of his house and asked him to move his car as he wanted to park his vehicle. (Sourced)

Security cameras installed around the spot captured how the argument escalated into the fatal shooting of Dhankhar, who had returned to India from Singapore just a day earlier to celebrate Diwali with his family and attend his nephew’s wedding scheduled for later this month. A prolonged dispute over the accused’s dog turned deadly on November 6, when Sharma allegedly opened fire on his neighbour.

In one of the purported CCTV recordings accessed by HT, Sharma, 42, is seen changing magazines and firing at Dhankhar from close range, even as the victim’s mother tries to help him.

As Dhankhar lies injured on the road, Sharma stands a short distance away, holding his licensed pistol, and is heard shouting, ‘Diwali Mubarak’ at him and his wife, who he referred to as a ‘widow’. The victim’s mother, who had stepped outside after hearing the commotion, is also seen near him.

“Come out, you all... Today, I will kill you all...” Sharma is heard shouting and hurling abuses in the CCTV footage as Dhankhar’s mother rushes inside to call other family members for help.

What happened before the shooting?

Before the shooting, the CCTV footage shows Sharma arriving at the building entrance and repeatedly addressing the victim as ‘Bhaiya’ and ‘Dhankhar sahab’, asking him to come downstairs and move his car.

Dhankhar initially comes to the balcony and asks Sharma whether there is no space to park his car. After Sharma confirms that there is no space, Dhankhar comes downstairs with his son to move the vehicle from the stilt parking area.

Sharma, who is carrying a backpack, is seen pacing around the stilt parking area for several seconds, with his right hand inside his trouser pocket, where he had allegedly kept his licensed pistol.

Accused open fire, hurled abuses

As soon as Dhankhar arrives with his son, Shaurya, Sharma gets into an argument with him, even as the victim says he does not want any confrontation. Sharma then allegedly pulls out his pistol and opens fire from a close range.

Shaurya runs upstairs, while Dhankhar, who has already been shot, runs towards the road and attempts to lock the gate to prevent Sharma from coming out.

However, Sharma manages to open the gate and follows him onto the road, continuing to hurl abuses. Dhankhar, despite being injured, attempts to resist Sharma and grabs him by the collar before later holding on to his leg as he falls.

Sharma struggles to free himself and moves away from Dhankhar. Meanwhile, the victim’s mother rushes outside to help her son.

Sharma then approaches Dhankhar again and fires at him at close range before changing the magazine of his pistol. He subsequently gets into his car, parked outside the building, and flees the spot as Dhankhar’s family members rush to take him to hospital.

According to police, Dhankhar sustained nine bullet injuries to his cheek, back and abdomen.

Dhankhar, a former Asia-Pacific regional business head at Tech Mahindra, was working as the senior vice-president of Vietnam-based FPT Software at the time of his death.

Prolonged dispute over the accused’s dog

His family lived on the ground floor of a four-storey building, while Sharma, along with his wife and two children, lived on the second floor.

According to police, Sharma had purchased a German Shepherd puppy three months earlier. He and his son allegedly allowed the dog to defecate in the stilt parking area and near the underground water storage tank at the rear of the building, prompting repeated objections from Dhankhar and his family.

Sharma had also allegedly damaged one of the building’s three main gates, which was used exclusively by Dhankhar, around 10 days before the incident, police said.

Dhankhar and his son had subsequently lodged a police complaint against Sharma. Following the complaint, Sharma was called to the Ankhir Police Post on the morning of November 6, just hours before the fatal shooting.

Yashpal Yadav, public relations officer of Faridabad Police, said Sharma was scheduled to be produced before a court on Thursday after the completion of his three-day police remand.

“The murder weapon and the car used to flee the spot have been recovered,” he added.