Noida man stabs journalist for objecting to brother feeding stray dog

A 40-year-old photojournalist was stabbed eight times after he allegedly objected to a man feeding a community dog in the middle of the road in Noida.

A 40-year-old photojournalist was stabbed eight times after he allegedly objected to a man feeding a community dog in the middle of the road in Noida’s Sector 74 on Monday night, police said. The suspect was arrested following a brief gunfight with the police early Tuesday, during which he sustained a bullet injury to the leg.

Early Tuesday, a police patrol spotted the suspect, identified as Deepak Sharma, 25, also a resident of Sarfabad. When police tried to stop him, he opened fire. In retaliatory firing, he was shot in the leg and taken into custody. (HT Photos)

The victim, Pramod Sharma, who works for a Hindi daily, lives with his family in the Sarfabad locality of Sector 74.

Sharma said the incident occurred around 8pm, just 100 metres from his house. “I was returning from work when I slowed down near a speed breaker. A man approached my car and, through the half-open window, stabbed me eight times in the right shoulder with a sharp-edged weapon,” he said. “Had the window been fully open, the injuries could have been worse.”

After briefly trying to catch the attacker, Sharma collapsed from blood loss. Fellow journalists alerted police and rushed him to a government hospital in Sector 39. Senior officers visited the hospital and formed three teams to trace the suspect.

Early Tuesday, a police patrol spotted the suspect, identified as Deepak Sharma, 25, also a resident of Sarfabad. When police tried to stop him, he opened fire. In retaliatory firing, he was shot in the leg and taken into custody.

“During questioning, Deepak said his younger brother had been feeding biscuits to a stray dog on the road near their home. Pramod Sharma objected, saying it blocked traffic. Deepak, who was nearby, got angry and stabbed him,” said Gopal Sharma, Sector 113 Station House Officer Krishna Gopal Sharma.

However, Sharma said he had only asked the boy to shoo away the dog so he could pass.

Police said Deepak has 11 criminal cases against him, including theft and charges under the Arms Act and Gangster Act. A country-made pistol and the knife used in the crime were recovered. A case under Sections 109 (attempt to murder) and 118(1) (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been registered at Sector 113 police station. Further investigation is underway.

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