Punjab Encounter, Delhi Driver Killing and Bengaluru Jail Phone Probe Put Crime Cases in Focus
Two alleged gang operatives were killed in a Ludhiana police encounter, a Delhi e-rickshaw driver’s fatal stabbing triggered protests, Assam continues to confront serious sexual-violence cases, and the Prajwal Revanna phone seizure has widened into an alleged Bengaluru prison smuggling network.
separate police investigations and crime cases in Punjab, Delhi, Assam and Karnataka, including a Bengaluru prison phone probe
Table of Contents (19 sections)
A series of unrelated but high-profile criminal cases across India has put policing, public safety and institutional accountability under renewed scrutiny, with developments reported from Punjab, Delhi, Assam and Karnataka.
In Ludhiana, police say two alleged operatives of the Doni Bal gang were killed during an exchange of fire on Sunday after officers intercepted them close to a blood-donation event. Police allege the two men were preparing to carry out a shooting at the gathering.
In Delhi, the killing of a 25-year-old e-rickshaw driver in the Shahbad Dairy area prompted his family and local residents to protest with his body on a road while demanding action against those responsible.
Assam, meanwhile, continues to deal with the aftermath of serious cases of sexual violence involving minors. One of the most prominent recent cases is the alleged rape and murder of a schoolgirl in Hailakandi, for which three teenagers were arrested in August. A separate case reported this month in Sivasagar involved the alleged abduction and repeated rape of a 15-year-old girl.
In Bengaluru, an investigation that began after prison authorities recovered a prohibited mobile phone and SIM card from a cell occupied by former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna and another inmate has widened substantially. Police say their investigation uncovered an alleged network involving inmates, intermediaries and prison personnel.
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Registrations under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita’s organised and petty organised crime provisions rose 16% in the first five months of 2026, while police separately arrested five people over an e-rickshaw driver’s killing and opened investigations into two unrelated body discoveries in outer Delhi.
Police say 30-year-old Bhawani was killed and 32-year-old Asha Ram injured during a September 15 altercation near a liquor shop in northwest Delhi. Two 19-year-olds and a juvenile have since been apprehended, while the surviving victim has been discharged from hospital.
The cases have no known connection. Taken together, however, they have generated questions ranging from organised crime and street safety to violence against women and children and security inside prisons.
Key Takeaways
Punjab Police said two alleged operatives of the Doni Bal gang were killed in a Ludhiana encounter after opening fire on officers; police allege they were heading to attack people at a nearby blood-donation event.
In Delhi, 25-year-old e-rickshaw driver Abhishek was fatally stabbed by unidentified bike-borne assailants in Shahbad Dairy, after which relatives and residents blocked a road demanding justice.
Assam has seen several serious sexual-violence investigations in recent weeks, including the Hailakandi rape-murder case involving a minor and a separate Sivasagar case in which two men were arrested over the alleged abduction and rape of a 15-year-old girl.
The discovery of a prohibited phone and SIM card in a Bengaluru Central Prison cell occupied by former MP Prajwal Revanna and another inmate has expanded into an investigation of an alleged prison phone-smuggling network.
These are separate criminal cases in different states. There is no evidence linking them, and allegations against arrested or accused persons remain subject to investigation and judicial proceedings.
Two Alleged Gang Operatives Killed in Ludhiana
Punjab’s latest major organised-crime development came in Ludhiana on Sunday.
Police identified the two men killed as Karanjot Singh, also known as Nona, and Sandeep Singh, both from Sultanwind in Amritsar.
Ludhiana Police Commissioner Swapan Sharma said the operation was conducted jointly by Ludhiana Police and Punjab Police’s Anti-Gangster Task Force. Authorities described the two men as alleged members of the Doni Bal gang.
According to the police account, officers received intelligence that armed men were preparing to attack people attending a blood-donation camp at Maryland Palace on Dugri Road.
The event was being held in memory of former sarpanch and Congress leader Ravi Khwajke, who was killed in 2016.
Police alleged that the suspected shooters intended to target rival gang members at the event.
Police Say Suspects Opened Fire First
According to Commissioner Sharma, officers established a checkpoint near Atam Park after receiving information about the alleged plan.
Police said they intercepted two men approaching on a motorcycle without a registration number.
The official account says the men attempted to flee and fired at the police team during the pursuit. Officers then returned fire.
Police said at least 24 rounds were exchanged. PTI reported that three automatic pistols and around 50 live cartridges were recovered.
Both suspects died in the encounter.
The police version of the circumstances surrounding the shooting is an official account and should be treated as such while further investigation proceeds.
Police also said they were attempting to identify and locate additional people allegedly connected to the suspected plot.
Doni Bal Remains Abroad, Police Say
Police linked the two deceased men to Doni Bal, described by authorities as a fugitive gangster believed to be outside India.
Investigators said preliminary findings indicated that the two alleged shooters had been in direct contact with him.
The Ludhiana operation comes as Punjab authorities continue targeting organised-crime networks whose alleged leaders or coordinators operate from abroad.
In a separate development days earlier, Punjab Police secured the extradition of Amritpal Singh alias Amrit Dalam from Moldova.
Police describe Dalam as an alleged operative of the Jaggu Bhagwanpuria gang and say he is wanted in 21 cases in Punjab involving allegations including murder, attempted murder, narcotics offences and weapons-related crimes.
The allegations against him will be subject to the judicial process following his return to India.
Delhi E-Rickshaw Driver Stabbed to Death
A separate killing in Delhi led to a public protest on Sunday.
Police said Abhishek, a 25-year-old e-rickshaw driver, was attacked late Saturday night in the Shahbad Dairy area of outer-north Delhi.
According to police, unidentified men riding a motorcycle stabbed him and fled.
His father, Shobharam Prajapati, said Abhishek was the family’s sole financial support.
The family alleged that the injured man did not receive timely assistance after the attack. That is the family’s account; the precise sequence of events surrounding the response remains part of the circumstances authorities will need to establish.
Family and Residents Block Road
After Abhishek’s death, relatives and residents brought his body onto a road and staged a protest demanding justice.
The demonstration reflected anger over both the killing and the family’s concerns about what happened immediately afterwards.
The attackers were described in the initial police account as unidentified.
That means speculation about their identities or motive would be premature until investigators establish those details.
The immediate questions for police include identifying the assailants, determining why Abhishek was targeted and reconstructing their movements before and after the attack.
Assam Cases Keep Sexual Violence in Focus
Assam has also faced public anger over serious sexual-violence cases involving minors.
One of the most prominent recent cases occurred in Hailakandi district in August, where a schoolgirl was found dead at her home.
Police arrested three teenagers, including a juvenile, in connection with the alleged rape and murder. Investigators formed a special team, while demonstrations and road blockades followed the killing.
Because the case involves a child victim, identifying details should remain protected.
The arrested individuals are accused in the case; guilt must be determined through the legal process.
Hailakandi Killing Triggered Major Protests
The Hailakandi case produced significant local protests, including demonstrations along National Highway 6.
Residents and organisations demanded stringent punishment and a speedy trial.
Initial reports contained differing references to the victim’s age, describing her as 15 or 16. She was consistently identified as a minor and a Class 10 student. For that reason, it is more accurate to describe her simply as a minor rather than present a disputed age as settled.
Police booked suspects under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
The investigation and subsequent judicial proceedings determine criminal responsibility; public anger does not replace that process.
Separate Sivasagar Case Leads to Two Arrests
A different Assam investigation emerged this month in Sivasagar district.
Police said two men, aged 19 and 24, were arrested after a 15-year-old girl was found to be pregnant.
According to the complaint described by police, the girl had allegedly been abducted and raped multiple times in May and threatened against telling her family.
The case was registered under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and POCSO Act.
Police said investigators would examine phone records and other evidence.
This case should not be described as a rape-murder case: the minor is a survivor. It is separate from the Hailakandi killing.
Keeping the cases distinct is important both for factual accuracy and for protecting victims and survivors from misleading reporting.
In Karnataka, the continuing investigation into prohibited mobile phones inside Bengaluru Central Prison has moved beyond the original seizure involving former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna.
A surprise inspection at the Parappana Agrahara prison on August 11 resulted in the recovery of a prohibited mobile phone, SIM card, charger and notebook from a cell occupied by Revanna and another inmate, Prathap Rai, according to police accounts reported by multiple publications.
Revanna is a former MP who has been convicted in a rape case and is serving a life sentence.
Investigators began tracing how the phone and SIM entered the prison.
What followed, according to Bengaluru Police, pointed to a much larger alleged contraband operation.
Nine Arrested as Probe Widens
Police said nine people were arrested across three related cases, including prison warders and inmates.
Investigators allege that prison personnel were involved in moving prohibited phones into or between sections of the jail.
The Indian Express reported that the investigation indicated mobile phones could command prices ranging from approximately ₹75,000 to ₹2 lakh inside the prison.
Those figures form part of reporting on the alleged smuggling operation and should not be interpreted as an officially established price structure for all contraband phones inside the jail.
Investigators are examining how security procedures were allegedly bypassed and whether additional prison employees were involved.
SIM Card Trail Became Important
The investigation also focused on the SIM card recovered during the inspection.
According to The Indian Express, investigators traced the card and examined how it entered the prison, uncovering alleged links involving inmates, intermediaries and warders.
The reported findings raised a broader institutional question.
A prohibited phone inside a high-security prison is not simply a violation by an inmate. If prison employees knowingly facilitate such access, the issue becomes one of internal security and corruption.
Authorities are therefore investigating not only possession of the devices but the alleged supply chain that enabled them to enter the facility.
Why the Prajwal Revanna Connection Matters
Revanna’s presence made the initial discovery particularly high-profile, but the investigation has since become wider than one prisoner.
The important factual distinction is that the recovery of a device from a cell occupied by Revanna and another inmate prompted further investigation; the subsequent allegations concern a broader suspected prison network.
Reporting should therefore avoid implying that every phone allegedly smuggled into Bengaluru Central Prison belonged to Revanna or was brought in specifically for him.
Investigators are dealing with multiple cases, inmates and alleged facilitators.
The wider question is how contraband devices could repeatedly enter a supposedly controlled prison environment.
Four Developments, Four Different Legal Contexts
Although these cases have appeared prominently in crime coverage, combining them into one narrative can create misleading impressions.
They are legally and factually separate.
The Ludhiana incident is an encounter in which police say armed suspects fired at officers while allegedly preparing another attack.
The Delhi case is a murder investigation involving an e-rickshaw driver and unidentified assailants.
The Assam cases concern alleged sexual violence against minors, including one homicide investigation and separate cases involving survivors.
The Bengaluru case concerns alleged contraband and corruption within a prison system following the discovery of a prohibited mobile device.
Each therefore requires different evidence and legal scrutiny.
Allegation Is Not Conviction
Crime reporting also requires particular care with terminology.
An arrest means police believe there is sufficient basis to take a person into custody under the applicable legal process. It does not establish guilt.
A police allegation remains an allegation unless established in court.
An encounter account supplied by police is an official version of events and can be reported as such, but should not automatically be converted into an independently verified reconstruction.
Similarly, protests demanding punishment do not determine the legal outcome of a case.
These distinctions become especially important in highly emotional cases involving murder, sexual violence or organised crime.
Institutional Accountability Emerges as a Common Question
There is no evidence that the Punjab, Delhi, Assam and Karnataka cases are connected.
But each raises a different question about institutions responsible for public safety.
Punjab authorities are confronting organised-crime networks that police say can coordinate violence across cities and from abroad.
Delhi Police face the task of identifying the people responsible for a street killing that triggered immediate community anger.
Assam authorities are handling serious sexual-offence investigations involving children, where victim protection, evidence preservation and timely prosecution are particularly important.
Karnataka’s prison authorities face scrutiny over how prohibited communications equipment allegedly moved through a secure facility.
The details are different, but public confidence in law enforcement depends heavily on how each investigation is handled.
What Happens Next
In Punjab, investigators are expected to continue tracing alleged associates of the two men killed in Ludhiana and examining the claimed plot against the blood-donation event.
Delhi Police must identify and arrest those responsible for Abhishek’s killing and establish a motive.
In Assam, the cases involving minors will proceed through investigation and the courts under the BNS and POCSO framework, with the identities and privacy of victims requiring protection.
In Bengaluru, investigators are continuing to examine the alleged phone-smuggling network and the possible involvement of additional prison personnel.
New evidence could change parts of the current picture in any of these cases.
For that reason, allegations, police claims and established judicial findings should remain clearly separated as the investigations develop.
Bottom Line
Several major crime stories are simultaneously drawing attention across India, but they should not be treated as a single crime wave without supporting data.
In Ludhiana, two alleged Doni Bal gang operatives were killed in an encounter that police say prevented a planned shooting.
In Delhi, a 25-year-old e-rickshaw driver was stabbed to death, prompting his family and residents to protest and demand justice.
Assam continues to deal with serious sexual-violence investigations involving minors, including the Hailakandi rape-murder case and a separate Sivasagar rape case.
And in Bengaluru, the seizure of a prohibited phone and SIM card from a prison cell occupied by Prajwal Revanna and another inmate has helped expose what police describe as a wider alleged phone-smuggling operation involving inmates and prison personnel.
The factual picture is serious enough without exaggeration. The next developments will depend on police investigations, forensic evidence and court proceedings rather than speculation around the cases.
Key Takeaway
These are four separate criminal developments across different states.
Punjab: Two alleged Doni Bal gang operatives killed in a Ludhiana encounter.
Delhi: 25-year-old e-rickshaw driver Abhishek fatally stabbed; family and residents protested.
Assam: Serious sexual-violence cases involving minors under investigation (Hailakandi and Sivasagar).
Karnataka: Prohibited phone seizure involving Prajwal Revanna has expanded into an alleged prison smuggling network probe.
Allegations remain subject to investigation and judicial process.
The Rajatheertha Team publishes news, explainers, guides and updates across India and the world. Our coverage follows Rajatheertha's editorial, verification and corrections standards.
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