Tension in Khoda over murder of teenager, 3 held, but not prime accused

Ghaziabad: Tension gripped Khoda through Saturday, a day after a Class 11 student, 17, died from stab wounds allegedly inflicted by another youth on Bakrid, with grieving relatives and local residents seeking justice and several right-wing outfits reaching the colony on the Delhi-Ghaziabad border, prompting police to heavily deploy there.

More than 300 police personnel, including two battalions of PAC, were rushed to Khoda to prevent any flare-up. Multiple SHOs were also stationed there.

The boy’s body reached his house after an autopsy to scenes of mourning and protest. His family delayed the cremation for hours as they demanded the arrest of all those involved. The teenager, a resident of Navneet Vihar, was stabbed on Thursday afternoon near Sharma Dairy in Khoda and died during treatment at a Noida hospital on Friday. Police said the main accused is a minor and absconding.

According to the complaint filed by the victim’s elder brother, the boy was with two friends when the accused confronted him, abused him and stabbed him repeatedly in the abdomen. One of the friends told police they were called near the accused’s house on Bakrid and that several others were present there. The family alleged it was not a spontaneous quarrel but a planned attack.

According to a friend of the victim, they were invited to a neighbour’s place on Bakrid, where the accused teenager asked the victim: “Tumne kabhi bakra halal hote dekha hai?” To that, the victim replied, “Nahi.” The accused said, “Aao dikhate hain (Have you ever seen a goat being killed? Come, we will show you).” When the victim refused and got up to leave, the accused allegedly began abusing and hurling expletives. During the altercation, the accused stabbed the victim in the stomach multiple times.

The victim’s sister said they had no reason to suspect anything when her brother was called to meet. “We thought it was a normal meeting. But he was not alone. Seven or eight others were there,” she alleged. Their mother, overcome with grief, demanded the harshest punishment. “The way my son was killed, I want the same punishment for the accused,” she said.

As protests escalated on Saturday, demonstrators demanded the arrest of all accused, strict legal action and demolition of their properties. Former Khoda municipal council chairperson Reena Bhati and BJP functionary Ajay Sharma visited the family.

Police and administrative officials remained at the victim’s house for hours. Officials said the family was assured of strong legal action, financial assistance, security, employment support and housing benefits. The cremation was finally held under heavy police cover at Ghazipur.

DCP (Trans-Hindon) Dhawal Jaiswal said an FIR was registered against five persons on the family’s complaint. After the death, murder and other relevant charges of BNS were invoked. Police said three persons, including the father of the main accused and two associates, were arrested while two others were being questioned.

“Four teams were searching for the absconding suspects,” an officer said.

Jaiswal said initial investigation revealed the accused and the victim were friends for several years and police gathered sufficient evidence showing them together in malls and other areas. “A few days ago, the accused purchased a new bike and on the day of Bakrid, the victim had been asking him for the keys because he wanted to drive the bike. When the accused refused, there was a heated exchange between the two of them. Another neighbour was carrying a knife, which the accused used to stab the victim,” the DCP said. “More than five teams are working to nab the accused. His last location was found to be in Haryana,” he added.

Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya said govt will take action against the accused “as per the law”.