NEW DELHI: A directive issued by the Delhi Police top brass asking all personnel including SHOs to get on WhatsApp has not only ensured better coordination but is also helping them solve murder cases.

The latest breakthrough came on early Tuesday when the Connaught Place police cracked the murder of a Sashastra Seema Bal soldier within 30 minutes by circulating CCTV grabs and videos amongst themselves on the mobile app.

Selvaraj, who was posted at Kashmir border and hailed from Kerala, had gone home on a 30-day annual leave and was returning to his unit, 48th battalion. He got off a train at New Delhi railway station and took an auto to board a connecting train to Kashmir which was to depart from Old Delhi railway station, joint commissioner of police (New Delhi) Mukesh Meena said.

When his auto reached Shaheed Bhagat Singh Marg in Connaught Place, Selvaraj stopped to buy a bottle of beer. It was around midnight. An inebriated man asked him to buy alcohol for him as well and this irked Selvaraj. He got into an argument which soon turned into a scuffle. The man whipped out an ice pick and stabbed Selvaraj. One of his strikes punctured Selvaraj’s heart.

A passerby informed police and SHO (CP) Mukesh Walia rushed to the spot with his team. Acting swiftly, Walia began to analyse CCTV footage from nearby shops. Eyewitnesses identified the killer from the footage.

Police circulated the video and images of the suspect to all beat officers in the area. A WhatsApp group was also formed wherein they began to share physical details of the suspect. Messages were flashed on wireless and patrol officers began to scan the entire area. Within half an hour, two of the beat officers detained three of the suspects and interrogated them at length. One of them turned out to be the killer. Police found the murder weapon. An FIR for murder was registered.

Special commissioner of police (law and order) Deepak Mishra has appreciated the team’s efforts. It was Mishra who had issued the directive last August giving all SHOs and policemen two week’s time to use WhatsApp for investigation and communication purposes. “Using technology has always borne fruit. We have asked all districts to use internet-enabled platforms in policing and congratulated the team for swift action,” Mishra said.