Day after 19-yr-old stabbed, left on roadside, Delhi Police probe partner’s role
A case has been registered against unknown people under section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code at Mayur Vihar police station
A day after a pregnant 19-year-old woman was found injured with multiple stab wounds and her face smashed with a heavy stone near Mayur Vihar in east Delhi, police officers probing the case said they have identified three suspects — the woman’s partner, his cousin and an unidentified masked man, who was seen around the crime scene around 9pm on Wednesday.
A case has been registered against unknown people under section 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code at Mayur Vihar police station.
The woman’s partner and his cousin joined the investigation after being summoned by the team on Friday. Investigators said that the two have been denying their roles in attacking the woman, who was left lying on the side of the road near Chilla village fire station for more than 12 hours between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Police said they have questioned at least 10 people in connection with the case till Friday evening, adding that they were probing it from all angles, including a crime of passion, violent robbery and sexual assault. According to the CCTV camera footage from the area, she was last seen with her partner’s cousin.
CCTVs revealed that around 9pm, the woman was seen waiting for someone below New Ashok Nagar Metro station. A few minutes later, her partner’s cousin arrived and both started walking towards the fire station, police said. “As there is no camera after the fire station traffic signal, it’s not clear what happened to the woman after there, where her partner’s cousin went after meeting her, and how she ended up in the forested area in an injured condition,” said another police officer, who did not want to be named.
The woman, who is pregnant, is still battling for life at Lok Nayak Hospital, where she was referred to from Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital on Thursday. She was unfit to record her statement on Friday. Doctors, who did not want to be named, said that “considering the woman’s serious condition her pregnancy would require termination.”. However, they refused to comment on whether the woman was raped and said that “only the police would confirm or deny this”.
Dr Suresh Kumar, medical director, Lok Nayak Hospital, said that the girl was brought from LBS hospital late on Thursday night. “Her vitals are stable now. Our team is currently monitoring her situation,” said Dr Kumar.
The injured woman was found lying in a forested area nearly 100 feet away from the Ghazipur-Noida Link Road. HT visited the scene on Friday and found that thorny shrubs surrounded the area.
Mohammad Harun, who sells planters on the roadside, told police said a masked person purchased a cigarette from a nearby tea stall and paid through UPI. “Ganesh Mochi (the tea stall owner) confirmed that the man had stopped at his shop. I directed the police to Ganesh when they asked me. However, he did not remember seeing the woman with the masked person,” said Harun.
A resident of Mayur Vihar, the 19-year-old is unmarried and lives with her family, police said, adding that she worked at an ayurveda centre. She was returning home after work on Wednesday when the incident happened.