3 killed as guard opens at south Delhi Muthoot Finance Ltd

NEW DELHI: In a tragic moment of madness, a young security guard opened indiscriminate fire from a semi-automatic rifle inside the south Delhi office of a private finance company, killing two employees on the spot, before shooting himself on Thursday night. Two other staffers are battling for life in hospital.

The 23-year-old guard, Vishram Singh, posted at the Govindpuri Extension office of Muthoot Finance Ltd, was apparently frustrated with his long working hours and meagre salary. Sources said Singh, who hails from Etah in UP, was also sore about having to stay back after the normal closing time of 6pm on Thursday.
"The guard suddenly opened fire while standing at his post at the entrance gate on the first floor of the building. He began shouting and cursing everyone, claiming he was being overworked and underpaid, and that he would seek his revenge,'' said joint commissioner (southern range) Amulya Patnaik.
The firing took place at 7.47 pm, when there were nine people inside the office - including the assailant. While senior assistant manager Jomesh alias Yogesh (27) and assistant manager Krishna T S (26) died on the spot, two of their other female colleagues - Nidhi (25), a trainee in the customer care division, and Annu (25), another assistant manager, are undergoing treatment at the AIIMS Trauma Centre for bullet injuries.
"Nidhi, Jomesh and Krishna had come to Muthooth Finance for a 10-day training programme from August 21. It was their farewell party today. When an office boy offered sweets from the party to the guard, he refused and within seconds opened fire at the reveling employees. He then shot himself in the temple," a senior police officer said.
"Anu is in a critical condition. She was wheeled straight into the operation theatre. Her case is bizarre as the bullet entered her lower left abdomen and came out from the right knee. Several organs may have been damaged because of the trajectory of the bullet," said a senior AIIMS doctor.
A bullet hit Nidhi in her left abdomen before coming out. According to doctors, she is stable but will be operated upon to know the extent of damage as she had received internal injuries.
Vishram Singh had been posted at the Muthoot office for the past one-and-a-half years. Police said he was employed with the Skyforce private security guard agency at Khanpur.
Additional CP Ajay Chaudhry said the guard had not married and rarely talked to anyone in office. "We have been talking to the officers at Muthoot and it seems that he had been extremely tense for the past two days over his salary. Even on Thursday morning, he was seeking an audience about this with the in-charge and manager of the branch, R P Sarathi," he said.
The police said six rounds were fired from the .315 semi-automatic while another four live rounds were recovered from his gun. The firearm had a private licence issued from UP. The police said they are now investigating whether there was a proper background check conducted on the guard before granting him the licence.
Sandeepa Dey, a housewife who lives just behind the office said she was startled to hear several gunshots. "We thought it was some kind of a terror attack. Immediately, there were shrieks and cries and people came running out of the office. We later came to know that the finance firm manager Sarathi had called the cops. A PCR van that was located near the Rampuri Chowk rushed in first. After that, a steady stream of police officers including the additional CP along with the crime investigation team has visited the area,'' said Dey.
Rashid Khan, an employee of the bank, said he was sitting and enjoying the sweets when he heard the gunshots. "I saw people falling on all sides. I somehow made it to the exit door. I do not know how my other colleagues escaped from the jaws of death,'' he said.
The Kalkaji police has registered a case of murder. All addresses are being confirmed from Muthoot officials and the families contacted. Senior Muthoot officials who were informed about the shooting at 8.15pm refused to comment. There have been several robbery attempts this year at branches of Muthoot, which is the country's leading gold loan dispenser.