Manish, belonging to the Valmiki community, was stabbed to death near his house on Saturday night. Three persons, identified as Alam, Bilal, and Faizan, were arrested by the police. A video of the incident also became viral on social media in which Manish was seen being stabbed at least 60 times by three persons. The horrifying incident was captured on CCTV footage.

The victim, Manish, was a resident of Sunder Nagri locality in the northeast area of the national capital. The accused, Aalam, Bilal, and Faizan have been arrested by the police.

The motive behind the killing is another case of mobile phone snatching in which Manish was also the victim. The police had arrested two accused — Kasim and Mohsin for snatching Manish’s phone and also injuring him with a knife.  The family members of the two accused had been exerting pressure on Manish to withdraw.

Manish testified in court on Sept 28 and was murdered outside his house in retaliation, three days later.

The close aides of Qasim and Mohsin were continuously threatening Manish’s family members too. Manish had also filed a complaint in court and told how he was being threatened. A hearing of the mobile snatching case was scheduled in the court in September. Before that, the family members of these two accused reached Manish’s house and started threatening him to withdraw the case.

The three accused Bilal, Alam and Faizan have been arrested by the police. Police said that those who went to Manish’s house and threatened the family are also being identified and they will also be arrested soon.

CCTV footage of the incident shows a group of men walking down the street and Manish who is coming from the other side is suddenly confronted by them after an argument the three stab him repeatedly. Manish struggles to get away but the three hold on to him as the stabbing continues.

There are a few people passing by but they do not interfere. Two men are also seen sitting on a motorcycle and a chair watching the gruesome murder taking place.

Manish was taken to hospital after the killers left, but he was declared “brought dead”, police said.

Delhi Police denied any communal angle in the death of a 20-year-old youth in North East Delhi’s Nand Nagri area as it appealed for calm following the arrest of three accused, who belonged to a particular community.

On Sunday morning, a huge number of people gathered at the Nand Nagari chowk and tried to block the road. The police had to use mild force to control them.

The police also said that they found some persons who tried to give the communal color and wanted to disturb the peace in the area.

“The accused persons knew the victim. They had been at odds with the victim for the past year. He was killed due to their fights,” DCP (North East) Sanjay Kumar Sain said. “We have already arrested all three accused. There was no communal angle to the incident,” he added.

DCP Sain also warned that strict action will be taken against anyone who tries to spread hate or flare up communal tension. He also asked people to maintain calm.

Family members of the victim say he fought with a relative of the accused a year back. Manish was stabbed during the fight. A case of attempted murder was registered against them and two persons were sent to jail.

Manish’s relatives alleged that since then the family members of the accused were constantly pressuring him to take the case back. The family of Manish alleged that on Saturday, Alam, Bilal, and Faizan, who are relatives of the previous accused, attacked Manish, leaving him dead on the spot.

Manoj Tiwari, BJP MP from North East Delhi, expressed sympathy for the victim’s family. “I request people to maintain peace in the area. I believe it’s a deep-rooted conspiracy that needs to be investigated thoroughly,” he added.

What is shocking about the incident is that a police picket was located just around 100 meters away from the spot. The attackers even threatened onlookers and also shouted to take the dead body as they had taken their revenge.

The residents, meanwhile, claimed that such incidents of stabbing are very common in the Nand Nagri area. According to them, many youths carry sharp-edged weapons to carry out petty theft and robberies. They also say local police never took any action against them despite being aware of the facts.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kapil Mishra tweeted, “Heart-rending incident in the Sundernagari area. Once again, jihadis killed a Dalit youth. I have spoken to police officials, and some criminals have been caught. I appeal to everyone to maintain restraint. Every one of us is angry over this but it is time to stand with the family in this hour of unbearable grief.”

Locals came out on the streets today morning protesting against the murder and demanding speedy justice. Police force has been deployed in the area as a precautionary measure to prevent any escallation of the situation as the victim and the accused are from different communities.

References:

indianarrative.com