Five juveniles, among six members of a group, in a random attack, stabbed a 40-year-old shopkeeper to death for refusing to offer free cigarettes to them in central Delhi, a Delhi Police official said on Wednesday.
According to the police, the incident occurred on Monday night. A PCR call reported that Rajender Kumar, the shopkeeper at H-47, Milan Pan Bhandar, H-Block, Patel Nagar, in the west of the city, was stabbed by a group of men.
The victim, a resident of Baljeet Nagar, was rushed to RML Hospital, where he was declared dead by the attending doctors.
Following the incident, an FIR under the sections 103(1)/3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered, and an investigation into this case was taken up by the team.
Through forensic examination, the CCTV footage of the vicinity was meticulously analysed by a team and through scrutiny of criminal dossiers, the police identified the main accused as Md. Mehtab, 19, a resident of Farid Puri, a known CCL who had previously been involved in a 2024 robbery-cum-attempt to murder case.
Acting on intelligence, the police located him under Shadipur Flyover on Tuesday. When ordered to surrender, the accused opened fire on the police, prompting retaliatory gunfire, which struck him in the right leg. He was subsequently overpowered, disarmed, and admitted to RML Hospital.
During further investigation into this case, five additional CCLs involved in the crime were also detained. The items recovered from their possession include two knives used in the murder, a country-made pistol with one live cartridge and one empty cartridge, and the clothing worn by the accused at the time of the crime.
While being interrogated by the officer, the main accused revealed that the offenders, all school dropouts from Farid Puri, had consumed alcohol before demanding free cigarette packets from the shop. “When Rajender Kumar refused, a heated exchange ensued, leading to the brutal stabbing. The accused fled the scene immediately after the attack,” he added.
A separate FIR under the sections 132/221/109(1) of the BNS & 25/27 Arms Act has been registered in connection with the firearm used.
Further investigation into this case is ongoing by the team, the DCP mentioned.