Man, 20, stabbed to death after altercation over smoking, 4 held

New Delhi: A 20-year-old man was stabbed to death allegedly by a group of men after an argument over smoking outside a battery-swapping station in northwest Delhi’s Rampura area, police said on Friday.

The incident took place late on the night of July 2 when the victim, identified as Vikas Sahu, objected to a man smoking near his workplace, they said. Police said that information was received

at Keshav Puram police station from Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital about the admission of an injured man.

“A police team rushed to the hospital and found that Vikas had sustained deep stab wounds. He succumbed to injuries during treatment,” a senior police officer said.

The officer further said that during the initial inquiry, the victim’s brother, Mithilesh Sahu, revealed that they were working at a Battery Smart Station in Lawrence Road in Rampura. Around 11.50 pm on July 2, a man using Battery Smart ID registered in the name of Roshan visited the station to swap a battery. He was later identified as Naveen (32), a resident of Wazirpur. Mithilesh told police that Naveen began smoking near the station, and when Vikas objected to it. An argument broke out between the two and Naveen left. Police said Naveen returned shortly with four to five associates and beat up Vikas. During the fight, one of the attackers stabbed Vikas with a knife. Mithilesh and a neighbour, Sanjay, rushed Vikas to the hospital, where he later died. The arrested accused have been identified as Naveen (32), his wife Manisha (24), Chirag (20), and a juvenile was apprehended.