BENGALURU: Panic and terror gripped the busy MG Road in the heart of the city around 7.15 pm on Sunday evening after a habitual chain-snatcher went on a stabbing spree. He snatched a 35-year-old woman’s chain and stabbed her. In his bid to escape, he stabbed four more people, including two police constables, who went after him. The public, however, overpowered him and nabbed him.
Sheetal Jain, a resident of Ulsoor, police constables Pratap and Mahesh, both attached to Cubbon Park police station, and two other people, who are yet to identified, sustained stab injuries. Dastagir (32), a habitual offender who was released from jail just three months ago, is the accused. He is facing several cases in various police stations including Kumaraswamy Layout station.
Sheetal had brought her twin kids to the Rangoli Metro Art Centre on MG Road Boulevard to play. While the kids were playing, Dastagir allegedly snatched her chain. When she screamed, he stabbed her in the nose and right wrist. As he ran to escape, passersby chased and confronted him. But he allegedly stabbed two men who tried to overpower him.
Constables Pratap and Mahesh, who were alerted about the incident, rushed to the spot immediately, but Dastagir stabbed them too. But more passersby gathered and overpowered him about 200 metres from where he attacked Sheetal. They handed him over to a police team which arrived a short while later.
“All the injured persons were rushed to hospitals. The victim, Sheetal, was treated at a private hospital as an outpatient. Preliminary probe has established that Dastagir is a habitual offender and he was released from jail just three months ago on bail. He was under the influence of alcohol and narcotic substances when he committed the offence. We are yet to question him as he is not in his senses yet,” a senior police officer said. Cubbon Park police are investigating.