A high-profile 1978 New Delhi kidnapping and double murder that resulted in the execution of both perpetrators in 1982.
Key Facts
- Date of kidnapping
- 26 August 1978
- Victims
- Siblings Geeta and Sanjay Chopra
- Perpetrators
- Kuljeet Singh (Ranga) and Jasbir Singh (Billa)
- Sentence
- Death penalty for both kidnappers
- Execution year
- 1982
- Motive
- Ransom; victims killed when father deemed not wealthy
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Kuljeet Singh (alias Ranga) and Jasbir Singh (alias Billa) kidnapped the two children with the intent of demanding ransom. Upon discovering that their father was a naval officer, they incorrectly assumed the family lacked sufficient wealth to pay, which led them to abandon the ransom plan entirely.
In August 1978 in New Delhi, siblings Geeta and Sanjay Chopra were kidnapped by Ranga and Billa. Both children were subsequently murdered. The perpetrators initially admitted to raping Geeta before her death, though they later retracted these statements and forensic evidence was inconclusive on the matter.
Both men were convicted of kidnapping and murder and sentenced to death. The sentence was carried out in 1982. The case gained lasting public attention and was later depicted in multiple television series, including Crime Patrol Dial 100 and Bhanwar, as well as the 2025 Netflix series Black Warrant.