(Trigger Warning: Descriptions of violence. Reader discretion advised.)
“I am scared to go to school now... I have my science examination coming up, but I don't think I will go,” 15-year-old Sneha (name changed), whose brother was allegedly stabbed to death in Delhi's Patel Nagar, tells The Quint. She is sitting in a corner of her house, hiding behind her mother.
Her 17-year-old brother was allegedly killed on 28 October when he spoke up against his minor sister's harassers. In a purported CCTV footage of the incident, two boys are seen attacking the victim. The latter then tries to turn on his phone to call for help, but he collapses before he can do that.
According to the Delhi Police, the victim was returning home from his computer class when the incident took place. The two boys, both minors, were apprehended, on the same day.
‘Children Have Fights, We Did Not Know They Would Stab Him’
The teen's father wrote in his police complaint that his son told him on the way to the hospital that the two juveniles had eve-teased his daughter. His son then slapped them a few days ago. In an attempt to avenge the insult, the boys stabbed him multiple times with a knife, the father added in his complaint.
“A few days before Diwali, my daughter was coming back from a tuition class when one of the boys eve-teased her. She spoke up against it but then they threatened her. She told them that she would tell her brother. When she came home, she did tell him who then went and confronted them. They threatened him, too. We thought they were children having a small fight... we did not know that this would happen.”Father of the deceased
The police received a call at around 9:30 pm on 28 October. They filed a First Information Report (FIR) based on a complaint by the father under Sections 302 (punishment for murder) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
“My son was was going to a computer class so that he can take up some job after his training. He used to reach home at 9 pm,” his father said.
The boy’s mother said:
“His class was only a few minutes away. My daughter’s tuition was only two minutes away. All of this happened on a two-minute walk. I always used to call him if he was late. That day too, I was just about to call him, when some people from the neighbourhood came and told us about the incident.”
DCP Central Shweta Chauhan, in a statement, said: “The team started working on the case and collected local intelligence and the footage of nearby CCTV cameras. From the scrutiny of more than 100 CCTV cameras, identification of assailants was established.”
The statement added that during the investigation, both the juveniles "confessed" that they used to "eve-tease the boy’s sister."
The family had not lodged a complaint about the molestation or harassment at the nearest police station, said the DCP.
To the allegations about a communal angle in the matter, Chauhan, categorically denying it, said:
"There is no communal angle. The apprehended boys are from the same community as the victim. They are Hindus. The accused are 14 year olds.”
‘We Are Not Safe Here’
The mother of the deceased, aged 39, told The Quint, “My son was very hardworking. He had recently completed his class 12 exams and had enrolled in Industrial Training Institute, Pusa Road. We had been living sparingly, only so we could save up for our children’s education and give them a brighter future. Our son is gone now, and our daughter is too scared to even step out of the house now.”
The mother further said that there were three boys involved in her son’s murder, but only two have been apprehended. "What about the third boy? How do we know that we are safe until all are arrested," she said.
She works odd jobs as a wage labourer on some days while her husband works at a private company. The family is originally from Uttarakhand and they stay on rent in central Delhi.
Fighting back tears, the boy's father said, “My daughter and my wife are not safe here. We live on rent, and we hope to move soon. My daughter is very precious. We are scared for her.”
The families of the apprehended minors, who are related, stay two lanes away from the victim's family.
When The Quint visited their home, their parents were not at home and their gates were locked.
Their grandfather told The Quint, “Children fight amongst themselves. We had no idea that this would happen... we do not know where they got the knife from either. Their parents are deeply saddened by what happened.”
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)