40-year-old man hacked to death by 18 in Mumbai’s Dharavi area; 3 held

A group of 18 people hacked a 40-year-old man to death with swords and knives near his home at Dharavi around 1am on Saturday .

A group of 18 people hacked a 40-year-old man to death with swords and knives near his home at Dharavi around 1am on Saturday .

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The police said the attack took place owing to an enmity between the victim, Afzal Ibrahim Shaikh, and the main accused in the case, Furkan Abdul Razzak Qureshi.

“Both have many cases of assault filed against them at Dharavi police station. We arrested three of the 18 attackers, and are on the lookout for others,” said deputy commissioner of police, zone 5, Niyati Thaker.

Dharavi police registered a case and charged the accused with murder, rioting and under the Arms Act.

“We launched a manhunt for the other accused, including Qureshi,” said senior inspector Ramesh Nangare of Dharavi police station.

According to the police, the attack took place when Shaikh and his family were sitting outside their home after dinner. Qureshi, along with his 17 aides, reached the spot with swords, knives and bamboos. They dragged Shaikh to the nearby Ambedkar Maidan and attacked him. They stabbed him around 50 times on his abdomen, chest and back, the police said.

“His family tried to save him but the accused threatened them with swords and also assaulted Shaikh’s 20-year-old son. The accused then fled the spot. His son suffered injuries to his hand,” said Shaikh’s relative, Ishaq Shaikh. The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

Shaikh used to work as a supervisor at a construction site in Dharavi, and would take labour contracts for private developers while the accused Qureshi runs a butcher shop, the police said.