Delhi Police on Sunday 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.
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.
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 colour 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 metres 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.