In a shocking twist to the alleged acid attack on a 20-year-old Delhi University student near Laxmibai College, police sources said the investigation has revealed that the woman’s father confessed to orchestrating the assault to implicate her alleged stalker.
Police added that the father was arrested on Monday in a separate case for allegedly raping the wife of the main accused in the purported acid attack.
According to a reports, the victim's father, identified as Aqeel, admitted during questioning that he planned the incident after the stalker’s wife filed a rape case against him.
Aqeel allegedly told police that he wanted to implicate the man, Jitender, and his associates, Ishan and Arman, with whom he also had disputes. He further revealed that his daughter brought the acid, a toilet-cleaning chemical, used in the staged attack.
The liquid used in the alleged incident was identified as ordinary toilet cleaner, a senior police officer said.
According to the officer, the student allegedly applied the cleaner on her hand after getting off the e-rickshaw and screamed to draw attention. She had carried the liquid from her home in her bag, the officer added.
The confession came after reports appeared that multiple discrepancies had emerged in the woman’s account. Investigators found that Jitender’s location at the time of the alleged attack was in Karol Bagh, several kilometres from the crime spot. “His call detail records and CCTV footage show that both Jitender and his wife were in Karol Bagh during the time of the alleged attack,” a police officer told PTI. The motorcycle said to have been used in the crime was also traced to the same area.
Police said that they had not found any concrete evidence suggesting an acid attack had taken place. No traces of acid were detected at the spot, and there was no CCTV footage showing three men on a motorcycle near the location, as the woman had claimed. A Forensic Science Laboratory team also did not recover any acid bottles from the area.
Investigators said the second-year BCom student, enrolled with the Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board, was travelling with her brother on a scooter till Ashok Vihar. She then took an e-rickshaw but got off around 300 metres away from the college gate, raising further questions about her version.
The woman had initially alleged that Jitender and his associates intercepted her near Laxmibai College and threw acid on her while she was on her way to attend an extra class. She claimed she managed to shield her face but suffered burns on her hands. Police said she had sustained minor injuries and was expected to be discharged soon.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northwest) Bhisham Singh confirmed that Jitender has been detained for questioning and claimed innocence, saying he was not present near the scene. Investigation also revealed that Ishan and Arman, named as co-accused in the FIR, are distant relatives of the woman and that there is a long-standing property dispute between their families.
Police records show that in 2018, the accused Ishan and Arman’s mother had alleged that the girl's father, Aqeel attacked her with acid, a case then registered at the Mangolpuri police station. Officers said they are now probing all possible angles, including the revenge and fabrication theories.
Jitender’s wife has filed a complaint against Aqeel, accusing him of sexual assault and blackmail. According to her complaint lodged at Bhalswa Dairy police station, she had worked at Aqeel’s socks manufacturing unit since 2021. She alleged that he took private photographs of her, sexually assaulted her and later sent the pictures to her husband, refusing to delete them despite repeated requests. Police said she had made PCR calls on October 24 and 25 but had not filed a written complaint then.
(With inputs from PTI)
