New Delhi, 28 October (H.S.): Para-athlete Neeraj Yadav, 42, who won three gold medals at the Jakarta and Hangzhou Asian Para Games, died under suspicious circumstances in Delhi on Tuesday night. He was found unconscious near his Scorpio-N SUV close to Maujpur Metro Station in northeast Delhi. His female friend took him to Guru Teg Bahadur (GTB) Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Poisoning is suspected, although the exact cause of death will be established only after the post-mortem report is received.

According to Rahul Alwal, Deputy Commissioner of Police for Northeast Delhi district, Yadav had been in a relationship with a young woman for some time. On Tuesday, she reportedly told him that she wanted to end their relationship. Police are investigating whether the circumstances surrounding this development were connected to his death. No suicide note was recovered from the scene.

According to the police, the woman visited Yadav at his residence in Sonipat on Tuesday morning and told him that she wanted to end the relationship. Yadav tried to persuade her to reconsider but later brought her to Delhi in his Scorpio-N SUV. He dropped her near Maujpur Metro Station.

At around 9 pm, the woman called Yadav, but he did not answer. She subsequently went to the area beneath the metro station, where she found him unconscious beside his vehicle. She rushed him to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead. After receiving information from the hospital, personnel from Jafrabad police station reached the scene and initiated an investigation.

Police have seized Yadav’s Scorpio-N SUV, his mobile phone and the woman’s mobile phone as part of the investigation. During an examination of the vehicle, a poisonous substance was reportedly found inside. Crime team personnel and a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team visited the scene and collected evidence.

Investigators are examining the call detail records (CDRs) of both mobile phones and scrutinising footage from CCTV cameras installed in the surrounding area. A police team is also being prepared to visit Sonipat to record statements from Yadav’s family members. Proceedings are being conducted under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which deals with police inquiries into deaths in specified circumstances. The investigation is ongoing.

Yadav, originally from Ghaziabad, ran the Anshneer Sports Academy in Sonipat. He married Shobha Yadav in 2018. Owing to family differences, his wife and mother lived in Delhi, while he resided separately in Sonipat.

Yadav had been confined to a wheelchair after contracting polio at the age of seven. He began competing in para-athletics in 2015 and went on to establish himself as a successful international athlete. He won a total of three gold medals in the javelin throw and discus throw events at the 2018 Asian Para Games in Jakarta and the 2023 Asian Para Games in Hangzhou.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar