NEW DELHI: A man allegedly killed his 22-year-old former live-in partner and a six-month-old girl – daughter of the woman’s friend – by slitting their throats with a knife at a flat in north Delhi’s Majnu Ka Tila on Tuesday afternoon.
The suspect, who worked at a restaurant in Timarpur, is yet to be arrested. According to the child’s father, the woman had made a video claiming threat to her life. Police said a PCR call was received at 1.01pm at Civil Lines police station from a woman named Rashmi, who reported that her daughter and her friend had been murdered. “Police teams reached the spot and found the two bodies,” a senior police officer said.Rashmi lives in a rented flat with her husband Durgesh, who works at a mobile shop in the local market, and their two daughters, aged five years and six months.“Rashmi’s friend Sonal, a native of Uttarakhand, had been living nearby with her live-in partner Nikhil, also from Uttarakhand. However, following frequent arguments and a recent fallout, she left him and began staying with Rashmi’s family,” the officer added.On Tuesday afternoon, when Rashmi and Durgesh had gone to pick up their elder daughter from school, Nikhil allegedly came to the flat and murdered Sonal and the baby. He is absconding, the officer said.Meera (45), the landlady who lives on the ground floor, recalled how she had seen the suspect enter the building minutes earlier. “I was downstairs sweeping, around 12.20pm, when he came and greeted me. He said, ‘Durgesh bhai ne kuch samaan mangwaya hai.’ He told me he was going upstairs to get some material for his shop. He had been frequenting the house for a while now, so I didn’t suspect anything at all.”Rashmi’s family’s flat is a single-room unit on the second floor, with the kitchen space just outside. Meera said the family had moved in about a month and a half ago, and Sonal had joined them a few days back. “They told me Sonal was a sister, so I allowed it. I thought she was a family member. They are nice, polite people; I had no complaints,” she said.Meera said Nikhil would often drop by. “He always said he was going upstairs to get something for the shop. That day too, he said the same thing. I thought it was just like every other time. Most times, Durgesh would accompany him, sometimes he wouldn’t. Nothing seemed unusual.”“About 20 minutes later, I saw him leave again. I didn’t ask anything, he just left quietly. A few minutes later, Rashmi came back with her other daughter and screamed loudly. I ran upstairs, and when I opened the door, I saw Sonal and the baby lying bloodied on the bed,” recalled Meera.Sonal’s cousin Sonu (28) said she was from Nainital and came from a large family. “She has a brother and three sisters. One of the sisters lives in UP’s Khoda village. All the siblings work in the city to support their family back home,” he said.While she was currently unemployed, Sonal was working as a receptionist till a few days ago. The neighbourhood and relatives, meanwhile, were left stunned by the grisly killings. Durgesh’s uncle Gopal stood silently, holding the couple’s young daughter in his arms. “We are from Rajasthan… I didn’t know much about their personal life. I’m just here to support the family now,” he said.
