New Delhi: Mohammed Shaqib was dropping off his last customer for the day when he accidentally hit an e-rickshaw Sunday midnight near Red Fort. Immediately after, some people dragged the 32-year-old cab driver out of his car and assaulted and stabbed him. One of them fatally shot him.
After completing the ride, Shaqib had planned to head home to his wife and son in Okhla’s Zakir Nagar. But, though the e-rickshaw driver he had hit left the scene, his attackers would not let go of him. The bullet pierced his upper right abdomen, and he died soon after at LNJP Hospital, said the police.
CCTV footage from the spot showed the car taking a U-turn at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Marg crossing and hitting the e-rickshaw, which turned upside down. The cab passenger and the e-rickshaw driver left the scene after the accident. It was past midnight. At that point, some onlookers picked up an argument with Shaqib and eventually killed him.
So far, the police have three suspects — a man on a scooty, with his wife and child riding pillion, and two other people at the scene.
The CCTV footage showed that the suspects started assaulting Shaqib soon after picking up an argument with him. The 32-year-old managed to get into his car to try to escape, but the suspects continued to hit him through the open windows. Then, they dragged him out of the car and thrashed him.
Shaqib managed to grab one of his attackers and beat him up back, but then they stabbed and shot him. The police said Shaqib’s wallet and phone were stolen.
Delhi Police, North district, registered a First Information Report in the case but have made no arrests yet.
“No arrests have been made so far. The investigation is on,” DCP (North) Manoj Kumar Meena told ThePrint. Asked if the police have questioned anyone, the DCP said, “No one… so far. Identification is on.”
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Not road rage?
Shaqib started working as a cab driver in 2017 after he completed a computer course. Married in 2022, he had a son only six months ago.
Distraught friends and family members said the case isn’t just “road rage”.
“He hit an e-rickshaw, but that e-rickshaw driver fled after the crowd gathered. People in an auto-rickshaw and a scooty were assaulting him. After stabbing him, the person on the scooty got a gun and shot at him,” Shaqib’s younger brother Mohammed Shariq told ThePrint.
Shaqib’s friend Nadeem said the accused stole the mobile phone and wallet before fleeing the scene.
Earlier on Tuesday, the DCP said in a statement that at 1.50 am, they received a call from LNJP Hospital about a patient with a gunshot injury. A beggar, who witnessed the entire incident, also sustained a gunshot injury to his right leg.
“Investigation revealed that at 12 am, the Maruti Wagon R, approaching from Kodia Pul to Chatta Rail Crossing, had hit a battery rickshaw. There was an altercation which ensued. After a few minutes of assault, the driver was dragged out of the vehicle by two persons. Meanwhile, people started gathering. The driver, Shaqib, managed to get hold of one of the accused persons, who was assaulting him. Then one of them took out the gun and shot,” the DCP said.
After an autopsy, Shaqib’s family performed his last rites Monday evening. “Zoya (sister-in-law) fell unconscious. Shaqib has taken care of the entire family of 10 people since I started working only recently. Our sisters (four of them) were supposed to get married this year,” Shariq said.
“We were all very happy after his child was born. Now, the child is fatherless. Do people carry guns and kill people over road accidents and then steal their phones and wallets? He didn’t even hit the vehicles of those who assaulted him,” Shariq said.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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