Who was Nafe Singh Rathee, the man shot dead by assailants in Jhajjar?

Seventy-year-old Nafe Singh Rathee, the former MLA from Bahadurgarh and the Haryana unit president of INLD, had previously received death threats. His party members were demanding police protection for him.

Former MLA from Bahadurgarh and the Indian National Lok Dal’s (INLD) Haryana unit president, Nafe Singh Rathee, was shot dead by assailants while he was traveling in his SUV in Bahadurgarh, near Delhi, on Sunday.

Another party worker traveling with Nafe Singh lost his life, while three private gunmen hired by Rathee were critically injured in the attack.

Who was Nafe Singh Rathee?

Nafe Singh Rathee was a member of the 9th and 10th Haryana Legislative Assembly from the Bahadurgarh constituency. In addition to serving two terms as MLA, he also held the position of Chairman of the Bahadurgarh Municipal Council.

Nafe Singh won his first seat in the Haryana Legislative Assembly on the INLD ticket in 1996 and secured another term. He later switched to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but eventually left the party and ran as an independent candidate in the 2018 election.

He was also facing legal proceedings as the main accused in the suicide case of Jagdish Rathi, the son of former BJP Minister Ram Rathi. According to Jagdish’s family, Nafe Singh Rathee used to harass him regarding a real estate matter.

Death threats against Nafe Singh Rathee

The 70-year-old politician had received numerous death threats and had made several appeals to the government for police protection.

“The two-time MLA, who is our state unit chief, was not provided with security. Representations were made in writing to senior police officers and the state home minister, stating that he was facing threats and should be provided with security,” said INLD leader Abhay Chautala to PTI.

The attack, which occurred weeks before the Lok Sabha polls, garnered sharp criticism from opposition party leaders. Many alleged that the attack on the politician was a failure of the Haryana government.

“The news of INLD state president Nafe Singh Rathee being shot dead in Haryana is very sad,” said Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sushil Gupta added, “The rule of law has ended in Haryana, and jungle raj prevails.”

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