‘No one helped him’: Man’s brutal murder in Ghaziabad leaves family fumbling for answers

A shaky video recorded by a passing driver purportedly shows two men standing over Arun, who is lying motionless on the ground, before one of them violently strikes him on the head with what appears to be a brick.

Police said he was taken to GTB Hospital by his relatives, where he succumbed to his injuries.

The spot where the incident took place. (Exrpess Photo)

At the scene of the crime the next afternoon, local shopkeepers, including workers at the restaurant in front of which Arun was beaten, said they had not seen anything as their establishments were closed at the time. The dhaba where he had stopped was not open. The remnants of the fatal incident were still visible, with fragments of brick smeared with blood scattered about, along with shattered glass from Arun’s car, which had allegedly been vandalised by his attackers.

At his home in Ghaziabad’s Javli village, members of Arun’s family gathered on Wednesday afternoon after his last rites.

Arun’s father Kawar Pal Singh, a Delhi Police sub-inspector who retired one and a half years ago, said that no one had intervened to save his son. “Everyone was just standing there watching. No one helped him, not even the people in the dhaba where he was eating. They could have called the police, the Teela Mod thana is on the same road. When people from our village came to know about the incident and went there, he was still lying in the same place.”

He also blamed two friends that Arun was accompanied by, saying that their behaviour was suspicious. “Why didn’t they call the police or take him to the hospital? They just fled from the spot. After a while one of them called my nephew and told him about the incident.”

Speaking about his son he said, “He was a typical farmer, always very straightforward in his behaviour. He was also rather quiet, not the type to get into a fight. We performed his last rites today. He has left two children behind, a 6-year-old girl and 4-year-old boy.”

According to SP City-2 Gyanendra Kumar Singh, “The incident happened when some people, perhaps four-five, came and got into a fight with the victim. The motive behind the fight is being investigated.”

Police said the men who beat Arun have not been identified so far, but their vehicle’s registration number has been identified. Arun’s family has also named the two friends who were with him in the FIR, and they are currently being questioned.

Kawar Pal, a 39-year veteran of the police force, now has to rely on it for justice. He said, “The station house officer, the superintendent, and circle officer had all come (home today)… they assured us that they will catch the culprits as soon as possible.”

A case has been registered at the Teela Mod police station under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 427 (mischief causing damage).