NEW DELHI: Vrinda was only 16 when her father was shot dead. To keep the family afloat, her mother, Rachna Yadav, opened a small shop selling salwar suits. Now, Vrinda and her elder sister have lost her to bullets too.Rachna (52) was the president of her block's residents welfare association and also worked with a party. The family said she was also planning to revive a YouTube-based news portal that was shut after her husband's death. "My mother promised that once I finished my degree, we would turn our shop into an office for the news portal and I would become its anchor," said Vrinda, a journalism student at IP University. Recalling their last conversation, Rachna's elder daughter, 32-year-old Kanika, said, "Just the night before she was killed, she said she wanted to see my daughter.

I was planning to come this week," she said. Having lost both parents to violence, the sisters said they feared for their own safety.

Siblings Fear For Safety, Rachna Yadav Was RWA President

Since 2023, Rachna had run the garment shop from a small space near her house, which also doubled as her RWA office. A whiteboard outside listed her open-door policy for residents and her fixed hours - 11am to 2pm and again from 5pm to 6.30pm - during which she addressed local grievances. In between, she continued selling clothes to support her family.

On Saturday, the park outside her house was filled with mourners. Many women from the neighbourhood sat quietly on benches, offering condolences. A resident said Rachna had encouraged women to raise local issues and stand up for themselves. "A few years ago, when there was a fire in the nearby shanties, she played a key role in helping residents," she said.On May 22, 2023, Rachna's husband, property dealer Bijender Yadav, was shot in Bhalswa village of Jahangirpuri.

Bijender, a declared criminal with nine cases, including murder, was killed following a long-standing rivalry that was brewing for nearly 18 months. The crime branch had arrested Sanju Yadav and his associate Sandeep Panwar. The conflict was triggered by a parking dispute between Sanju and Bijender's brother, Rahul Yadav, which escalated after Rahul posted offensive comments and threats on Facebook. Fearing that Bijender was plotting to kill them, Sanju and Sandeep conspired to strike first. The rivalry, police said, was further escalated during the 2022 MCD election when Sanju's brother became a councillor while Bijender's brother lost it and allegedly tried to threaten Sanju's group.The family claimed Bijender was acquitted in many of the criminal cases.