Zikra Khan, the 25-year-old woman who calls herself “Lady don” and has been arrested in connection with the murder of a teenager in Delhi's Seelampur area, on Monday refuted the charges against her.
Kunal, 17, was stabbed with a sharp weapon near his home on the evening of April 17. He was rushed to the nearby Jag Pravesh Chandra Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
"I did not kill Kunal. I am being framed unnecessarily," Zikra, who is under police custody, told reporters on Monday, according to ANI.
Kunal's killing triggered protests by Kunal’s family and neighbours, prompting the deployment of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and local police for crowd control.
{{/usCountry}}Kunal's killing triggered protests by Kunal’s family and neighbours, prompting the deployment of the Rapid Action Force (RAF) and local police for crowd control.
{{/usCountry}}Besides Zikra, six people have been arrested and two others have been apprehended by the police.
The murder case
The victim, Kunal, was allegedly killed in a revenge attack by Zikra and her associates.
During questioning, Zikra told police that on November 1 last year, her cousin Sahil Ahmed, 18, was attacked by two boys, Lala and Shambhu, who were friends of Kunal. Although Kunal was present, his name wasn’t included in the FIR as he was a minor.
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In the FIR, accessed by HT, Ahmed had alleged that Laala and his two friends attacked him and stabbed him for bursting crackers.
Zikra and Sahil believed that he was responsible for the attack and decided to take revenge.
Who is ‘Lady don’ Zikra Khan
Zikra Khan, a resident of Seelampur, lives with her maternal family and has a two-year-old daughter. She runs a gang in the locality and has a prior criminal record, according to the police.
Last month, she was arrested under the Arms Act after she posted a video on social media brandishing a pistol.
She reportedly has ties to Zoya Khan, the wife of jailed gangster Hashim Baba, who was arrested by Delhi Police’s special cell in a narcotics case in February—though police have not officially confirmed this connection.
“She walks around with her gang at 1- 2am, trying to show she’s a gangster,” said Rehaan Khan, a 48-year-old trader in Seelampur. “She wants to be feared… to be known as a criminal.”