Cousin kills canteen owner in Gurgaon over past grudge, pays co-accused Rs 10 lakh; both arrested

Two men have been arrested in connection with the murder of a 50-year-old canteen owner, the Gurgaon Police said Tuesday, adding that one of the accused is a cousin of the deceased.

The case stemmed from a long-standing business dispute dating back to 2011, police said.

Police said they were informed early in the morning on the day of the incident that a man was lying injured in a pool of blood by the roadside. He was rushed to Civil Hospital at Sector 10 in an emergency response vehicle (ERV), and doctors declared him dead on arrival. The deceased was identified as Sanjay Sharma, who lived in Basai Enclave Part-2 and was shot dead on January 6 near Rama Park in Sector 37D. A post-mortem examination was conducted.

Sanjay’s son then lodged a complaint stating that his father had left home in his car for his canteen at Sector 34 on January 6 morning and that he was attacked by unidentified persons en route. An FIR was registered at the Sector 10 police station for murder on January 7, and the case was transferred to the Crime Branch and arrests were subsequently made.

Police said that the arrested accused were identified as Gurudatt Sharma alias Baleshwar Sharma (56), a resident of Dahkora village in Rohtak; and Anil (48) from Kandora village in Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh.

“Gurudatt was apprehended from Dehradun (Uttarakhand) on January 10 and produced in court the next day, from where he was remanded to four days’ police custody. Anil was arrested from Muzaffarnagar (UP), on Monday,” an officer said.

During questioning, the accused told police that Gurudatt, who happens to be the maternal cousin of the deceased, runs a cafe in Dehradun.

“Both had jointly operated a business until 2011-12, but differences led to its closure and repeated disputes thereafter. Harbouring a long grudge over the fallout, Gurudatt, along with Anil and others, planned the murder. Anil first conducted a reconnaissance in late December,” an officer said.

According to the police, on January 6, they rammed Sanjay’s vehicle near Rama Park and when he stepped out, Gurudatt shot him.

“The accused revealed that the murder was premeditated. Gurudatt had known Anil, a private bus driver in Muzaffarnagar, for about a decade and paid him Rs 10 lakh for a reconnaissance and the execution of the crime,” the officer said.

The accused also allegedly told police that they watched videos on YouTube to get ideas about committing a murder and evading detection, the police also said.

The investigation is still underway, with officers making efforts to trace and arrest other persons involved in the case, police said.

In August 2025, the city police had arrested a man in connection with a murder. The accused allegedly had an affair with the deceased’s wife, police said, adding that the accused in this case too had taken ideas from the Internet to kill and dispose of the body.

Abhimanyu Hazarika is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Expre... Read More