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THE BRUTAL MURDER OF GEETA AND SANJAY CHOPRA in 1978 in New Delhi became a nightmare that still lingers. On August 26, 1978, the Chopra siblings were kidnapped and murdered by Kuljeet Singh, alias Ranga, and Jasbir Singh, alias Billa. The case shook the entire nation and ultimately became one of the most dreaded criminal cases of the 1970s.

After a prolonged investigation, Ranga and Billa were convicted and sentenced to death under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 363 (kidnapping), Section 302 (murder), and Section 366 (kidnapping a woman with the intention of having sexual intercourse with her), among several others. Senior jail officer Sunil Gupta, who worked at Tihar Jail, shared details about the final years of Ranga and Billa in his 2019 book Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer, co-authored by journalist Sunetra Choudhury.

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Sunil Gupta Shares the Story of Ranga and Billa from Tihar Jail

Gupta recalled that Ranga and Billa had very different personalities. He shared that Ranga was an entertainer in the jail and would always refer to himself as “Ranga Khush.” He described him as a tall 24-year-old man who always seemed happy, living up to his catchphrase, “Ranga Khush.” Gupta said that Ranga had allegedly picked up the phrase from a Bollywood film and would repeatedly say it.

Meanwhile, his accomplice Billa was quite the opposite. Gupta described him as a 22-year-old man, standing 5.5 feet tall, who did not participate in jail activities as much as Ranga. He added that Billa repeatedly told the staff that he had been falsely accused in the case and asked his family to bring him a lawyer to secure bail.

Gupta wrote in his book that Ranga had claimed they were supposed to kidnap Sanjay and Geeta Chopra for ransom. He further added that the situation took a turn when Billa saw Geeta. “He was overpowered by his attraction towards her and turned a simple kidnapping and robbery into the most gruesome rape and murder case that Delhi had witnessed at that time,” Gupta wrote. Meanwhile, Billa repeatedly maintained that he had been framed by Ranga.

After being convicted in the case, Ranga and Billa were sentenced to death by an Additional Sessions Judge in Delhi. They challenged the court's verdict multiple times, leading to delays in the execution of their death sentences. Eventually, they were hanged on January 31, 1982. 

A week earlier to their death, Ranga and Billa were then shifted to the Phansi Kothi of Tihar Jail, where they were asked whether they wanted to meet their families one last time.

In their final moments, Gupta remembered that Ranga, true to his nature, was shouting his catchphrase, “Ranga Khush,” while Billa was crying. Gupta also shared another shocking detail about their final moments, recalling how even death did not take Ranga on the first attempt.

On January 31, 1982, the executioners pulled the lever, and both Ranga and Billa fell into the 15-foot well below. Billa died immediately, but Ranga still had a pulse two hours after he was hanged. He eventually died after a jail employee pulled his legs from below, tightening the rope around his neck.

The shocking Geeta and Sanjay Chopra kidnapping and murder case is still remembered for its brutality. 16 ½ year-old Geeta Chopra and 14-year-old Sanjay Chopra were kidnapped while on their way to participate in the radio programme Yuva Vani at All India Radio. When their bodies were discovered in a decomposed state near the Delhi Ridge, they bore multiple stab wounds.

[Edited by Khushboo Singh]

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