Navi Mumbai: Two of the three men wanted for the stabbing of a 25-year-old hawker in the luggage compartment of a CSMT-Khopoli local train were arrested within 12 hours of the incident occurring on Friday morning.
Background of the Attack
The attack on the hawker, Satish Kumar Pathak (25) from Masjid Bandar, took place after a spat over his not making more space for the trio sitting alongside him on the floor in the crowded luggage compartment. The stabbing was done with a pocket knife. Blows were also rained on the hawker with fists. An injured Pathak went to the government railway police (GRP) outpost in Karjat to report the attack.
Arrests Made
The crime detection team of the GRP there launched a search and made the two arrests from a village in Neral of Raigad district. The arrested men were Ebran Idris Ansari (18), a resident of Neral, and Karan Agrawal (22), a resident of Shelu in Karjat taluka, while the wanted man was identified as Siddharth Gaikwad of Neral.
Details of the Incident
Senior inspector Kiran Matkar said Pathak was travelling in the luggage compartment beside the ladies coach at the CSMT-end of the train. He was on his way to Khopoli to sell handkerchiefs and socks at the weekly market. He boarded the 4.42 am CSMT-Khopoli train at Byculla. As all the seats were occupied, Pathak had to sit on the floor with other passengers, including the three accused, who had boarded the train at Vithalwadi for Neral. Around 6.30 am, when the luggage compartment got more crowded at Vangani, the accused told Pathak to move a bit and make space as they were sitting uncomfortably in the crowd. An argument ensued and turned violent.
The GRP said Ansari and Gaikwad rained blows on Pathak while Agrawal stabbed him and caused him injuries near the navel.
Medical Response
"The injured Pathak alighted at Karjat railway station and reached the Karjat GRP outpost around 7.15 am and narrated the incident," SPI Matkar said. "As he was bleeding from the wound, he was taken to Ulhasnagar government hospital, about 45 km from Karjat." Matkar said it was mandatory for the police to admit the injured person to a government hospital and there was no such hospital in Karjat. The Ulhasnagar government hospital referred Pathak to KEM Hospital in Mumbai.
Investigation and Arrests
"Even before registering an FIR against the three accused, our crime detection team had started searching for the accused," Matkar said. "As Pathak informed that his assailants were carrying wooden cages meant for keeping pigeons, we scanned the CCTV camera footage at Ulhasnagar, Shelu and Neral railway stations. Two accused, Ansari and Agrawal, were seen alighting at Neral station, while Agrawal alighted at Shelu station. We further checked the CCTV footage in Neral city and first apprehended Ansari from Neral around 6 pm. Ansari revealed the names of the other two accused, Agrawal and Gaikwad, after which one GRP team searched for Gaikwad in Neral city, but he was not found, while the other GRP team searched for Agrawal in Shelu about 2 km from Neral by road, and he was apprehended around 6.30 pm. On Friday, the arrested duo were produced before the Kalyan railway court, which remanded them to police custody till June 15."
Legal Charges
Matkar said that considering the superficial injuries inflicted on Pathak, and as there was no injury to his internal organs mentioned in the KEM hospital medical report, the three accused were slapped with a case under BNS sections for the offence of voluntarily causing grievous hurt using dangerous weapons or means, voluntarily causing hurt, intentional insults intended to provoke a breach of peace, and joint criminal liability.
"After receiving treatment at KEM Hospital, Pathak’s family took him to their hometown in Lucknow," Matkar said.
