Blood spilt along with colour

Four youths stabbed a man to death because he tried to stop them from throwing gulal at a couple, on Wednesday.

Four youths stabbed a man to death because he tried to stop them from throwing gulal at a couple, on Wednesday.

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The murder happened near Lion’s Hospital T-point in the New Friends Colony area of Southeast Delhi.

The couple were travelling in a cycle rickshaw. Of the four youths accused of murder, two are minors. They got into a fight with the deceased, Rahisuddin (25), who was following the couple on a motorcycle with his employer Sajid.

Siraj Ahmed and his wife, both residents of Bulandshahr, had come to visit Sajid, their relative, a resident of Zakir Nagar. They were travelling from Taimoor Nagar to Zakir Nagar in the area.

The accused Krishan Kumar (20), Ravi (19) and two minors were playing Holi near the Lion’s Hospital T-Point. According to police, they threw gulal at Ahmed’s wife, who objected to it. “I told them not to throw colours at my wife. But they started abusing me and then got into a fight. My brother-in-law Sajid and Rahisuddin, who were following us, got into a fight with them. One of them then took out a knife and stabbed Rahisuddin before running away from the spot,” said Ahmed.

The police said the victim was first taken to Lion’s Hospital and then to Safdarjung Hospital, which referred him to AIIMS Trauma Centre. There, he was declared brought dead.

The police were called around 3 pm. Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast) Shalini Singh said, “The accused were playing Holi inside their house but later came out to play. They threw colour at the couple, causing a heated argument which led to the murder. Teams were immediately formed to catch the culprits.”

She added that Kumar always carried a switchblade with him. “He recently had an altercation with a few men in the area. So, he started carrying a knife for his protection. It was with this knife he committed the murder,” she said.

The New Friends Colony Police caught the accused in less than 24 hours. Ravi is a resident of Khizrabad and Kumar is a resident of Bhogal. The police said both had no criminal record.