Delhi Police say the ransacking of the DRDO scientist’s flat in a walled-up complex in the city left them out of jewellery, cash and watches to the tune of Rs 45-50 lakh. The break-in at the Timarpur colony in North Delhi has some officials and neighbours on edge about their own safety.
It is a case that involves a place where you’d expect a certain level of discretion for the kind of work the scientists do. With the homeowner away, the would-be thieves made their move, and it has people asking what the guards and cameras were for.
How the break-in came to light
Seema Gautam, the scientist in question, had made the trip to Chandigarh on May 15, 2026 to be with her husband and young daughter. She works in Delhi; he is a Joint Director with DRDO in Chandigarh.
Then on May 23, some of her neighbours in the flat saw the front door was askew and let her know. When she and her family got back to Delhi they found a mess and put in a complaint at the Timarpur station that evening.
What was taken and how
The intruders didn’t make it easy on themselves: they put three locks out of commission to get in and then put some muscle into an iron cupboard to get to what they wanted. This was all inside the Scientist Hostel at the DRDO Timarpur complex.
The FIR puts down some Rs 15,000 in hard cash and a bit of foreign currency – 20 pounds, 50 dirhams. But it’s the gold that’s gone: seven chains, six bangles, a set of rings and earrings, a nose pin, even some of the children’s trinkets.
They made off with some silver as well, like an anklet and 20 grams of coins. And three watches, two from Daniel Klein and a Titan. In all, the police figure the haul is somewhere in the region of Rs 45 to 50 lakh.
Probe inside a guarded campus
We have a case on the books and we’ve heard from the family, the police will tell you. Teams from the Crime Branch and forensics have been over the flat. We’re going through any CCTV we can find to put a face on the suspects. Nothing to show for it in terms of an arrest, not yet.
You could say the incident has put a finer point on the security situation at the DRDO complex. Even with 24 men on guard and cameras in place, these guys got in and out without anyone so much as noticing, according to those in the know.
Residents demand tighter security
Word of the theft has done a number on the nerves of the 300 or so scientists who call the DRDO colony home, some of them quite senior. They have a few hard questions to ask about who gets in and how the place is being patrolled.
You’ll hear a lot of talk in the colony for more robust security. In a way, this has become the issue of the day when it comes to looking after people and their things in a sensitive part of town.
What police are doing now
Here is what the investigators are up to as they try to put the file together:
– A case is open at the Timarpur station
– Forensics have been in and out of the flat
– We are sifting through nearby CCTV
– The family has given their side of it
– As of now, no one is in custody
For the time being, it is a matter of using what we have from the ground and the footage to retrace the burglars’ steps. The residents are waiting to see if this means any real change in how the complex is secured.
Gautam and her family just want their stuff back and are working with us. For the DRDO and the cops, the measure of this will be whether a job of this size forces a hand in how they monitor and deter crime here on out.
