Behind Rajouri Garden mall stabbing, a minor argument on the dance floor
At the mall, a day after the murder. Express photo by Amit Mehra At the mall, a day after the murder. Express photo by Amit Mehra
Accidentally elbowing a man on the dance floor led to the murder of a 25-year-old at a mall in Rajouri Garden, police said.
According to police, Sajjan was employed at Vigyan Bhavan as a driver and had been saving up for a delayed treat for his friends — his birthday was on July 17 last month, but he didn’t have enough money at the time.
On Sunday, Sajjan took his friends to West Gate Mall at Rajouri Garden. According to police, they grabbed a drink outside, at RK Puram, because they couldn’t afford it inside the mall.
They then headed to a club inside the mall, where Sajjan and his friends entered into an argument with one of the accused, Imran, after he was accidentally elbowed while the group was dancing.
The brawl escalated, and the two groups confronted each other on the second floor of the mall. According to police, one person, identified as Saleem, whipped out a knife and stabbed Sajjan three times, killing him.
DCP (West) claimed they have arrested five people and apprehended a juvenile.
The stabbing took place inside the crowded mall which has several CCTV cameras. But there is no footage of the murder as that area was a blind spot, not covered by CCTV cameras, said D P Mishra, the security supervisor at the mall.
But the cameras did capture the blood-stained body of Sajjan being shifted out of the mall and two people, alleged to be the main culprits, made a dash for the exit, even as 18 security guards manning the four main exits struggled to make sense of what just happened.
Sajjan, meanwhile, did not have a smooth exit, as around five people lifted his body and tried to enter the upper ground floor lift, only to find the doors close on their face.
The group eventually shifted him to the staircase, dropping him at one point, leaving a trail of blood on the floor, footage shows. Sajjan eventually exited the mall through the basement.
Guards posted at the mall, which wore a deserted look Monday, were unable to explain how the stabbing took place — but were not surprised. “Fights take place regularly inside the mall. Sometimes they come drunk and pick a fight with bouncers or security guards,” said a security officer, checking CCTV footage at the control room.
Rajendra Singh, in-charge of the fire safety in the mall, claimed the accused may have sneaked the knife in from one of the two fire exits or may have used six exits from the cinema hall usually unmanned by guards.
Meanwhile, Sajjan’s family struggled to come to terms with what had happened. His younger brother Babul, who had been waiting outside the Rajouri Garden police station since Friday night, said, “I had taken his car for a spin but he stopped me. I thought he did not want me to drive his car, but he told me that the breaks of the vehicle were not working. I could have died. He saved me but died at the party.”
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