Chandigarh: In a stark exposure of cracks in Chandigarh Police’s intelligence and surveillance network, Delhi Police’s most-wanted gangster Vikas Dahiya — alias Sonu, alias Thekedar — managed to live undetected in the city for nearly three months by assuming a fake identity and renting a house in Sector 38.The 42-year-old criminal, wanted in multiple serious cases across four states, was finally tracked down and arrested by Delhi Police’s crime branch following a covert operation conducted in Chandigarh a few days ago. Sources said Dahiya was not merely in hiding but was allegedly running an illegal liquor supply network during his stay.His prolonged presence in the city has raised uncomfortable questions for Chandigarh Police, which has multiple specialised units — including the operation cell, crime branch and district crime cell — besides 16 police stations and several police posts. Recently, two special inspectors were also deployed in the operation cell specifically to monitor gangsters’ movements. Despite this elaborate apparatus, a fugitive slipping through the net for months has exposed glaring intelligence failures.Investigators suspect that Dahiya was smuggling liquor from Chandigarh and supplying it to other states, particularly Gujarat. If confirmed, officials said, it would point to a far-reaching interstate crime network operating unnoticed from within the city.A resident of Kharkhauda in Sonipat district, Dahiya was convicted of murder in 2010 and sentenced to life imprisonment. After securing bail, he allegedly shot dead Vikas Dagar alias Bhinda — a national-level gold medallist boxer — in Surakhpur, Delhi, in July 2025. He fled immediately after the July 30 shooting and was declared a fugitive by a court on October 18, 2025.Two alleged accomplices — Sumit Rana alias Chhotu and Krishna Dahiya alias Maharaj — are still on the run.Delhi Police’s crime branch had been hunting Dahiya for nine months when investigators received a critical lead about his girlfriend, who had shifted to Chandigarh. Acting on the tip-off, a Delhi Police team quietly reached the city and conducted discreet reconnaissance for several days.Using a combination of technical surveillance and human intelligence, police zeroed in on a rented accommodation in Sector 38. Dahiya was living under a false name and kept a deliberate distance from his girlfriend to avoid attention. His identity was ultimately confirmed by a distinct cut mark below his left eye.Once conclusive inputs were gathered, the crime branch team swooped down on the Sector 38 house and arrested Dahiya, who was later taken to Delhi. A parallel raid was carried out in Zirakpur to nab one of his associates, but the suspect managed to flee moments before police arrived.The episode is the latest in a series of cases where hardened criminals have used Chandigarh as a safe hideout. In July 2018, dreaded gangster Dilpreet Singh Baba of the Bambiha gang was arrested after an encounter near ISBT-43, having lived in Sector 38 for eight months on a fake identity. In June 2019, Punjab and UT police arrested two hardcore criminals — Gurbhej Singh and Vinod Kumar — who had been hiding in the Deep Complex area of Hallomajra despite being wanted in over a dozen serious cases.
