In the 144-page Delhi Police annual review, there was not so much as a single paragraph commemorating the five-time gallantry medal winner, who was killed by a property dealer friend in Gurgaon on March 24, 2008. At the time of his funeral, too, the Delhi police top brass kept their distance, likely because of Singh’s somewhat patchy reputation.

But the high-profile cop also attracted fierce loyalty. “What if he did not die fighting for the nation? He did so much for the nation while he was alive. Few others could equal his achievements. It is so painful to see that the department does not have any place for Rajbir Singh, who worked so hard to rid the city of crime and terror,” a police officer who worked with the ACP said on condition of anonymity.