NEW DELHI: A day after a 21-year-old woman, identified as Muskan, was allegedly stabbed to death while home alone in west Delhi’s Tilak Nagar, police nabbed the accused man after an exchange of fire late on Thursday night.
Police got a tip-off around 10.55 pm on Thursday about the presence of the accused, Aqib alias Imran (26), in Raghubir Nagar’s nala road. Jumping into action, a team of cops rushed to the spot and laid a strategic cordon, DCP (west) Hareshwar Swami stated.
Around 11.15 pm, they spotted the accused near the sub-registrar office in Rajouri Garden’s nala road. When asked to surrender, the accused took out a pistol and opened fire at the police personnel.
Despite repeated warnings, he continued firing at the cops, prompting them to return fire. Head Constable Jitender fired a warning shot in the air, but Imran did not relent. Jitender and another head constable, Nand Kishore, subsequently fired three rounds each aimed at his legs, police said.
A separate FIR has been registered at the Rajouri Garden police station under the relevant sections of the BNS and the Arms Act in connection with the firing incident.
Around 15 teams comprising personnel from the Special Staff, AATS, Narcotics Squad, Sub-Division Tilak Nagar crack teams, local police and other specialised units had been deployed to trace the accused.
Police said the woman—a second-year student of Delhi University’s School of Open Learning working part-time as a model—and the accused, Aqib alias Imran (26), first met at a gym where he worked as a trainer. They knew each other for over a year and a half. However, the accused was miffed that she had ended their relationship and been avoiding him for the past two months.
Aqib reached Muskan’s residence on Wednesday while she was home alone to talk, but a heated argument broke out between them, ending in the fatal stabbing. The accused was captured on a CCTV camera fleeing the spot after the incident.
The matter came to light when the victim’s home help found her lying on the floor. The victim was rushed to Janakpuri’s Amar Leela Hospital, where she was declared brought dead. Meanwhile, a PCR call about the incident was made at the Tilak Nagar police station at 7.24 pm. A murder case was subsequently registered.