‘Drunk’ man held for attacking journalist
A 22-year-old man working in a nail paint factory was arrested on Friday for allegedly attacking and seriously injuring freelance journalist Aparna Kalra, 45, with a “bricklike substance” in Ashok Vihar on Thursday.
Kalra, police said, was attacked after she objected to the man’s misbehaviour.
According to the police, the accused, Sanjay, a resident of Sawan Park area, was a regular visitor to the park and often observed Kalra taking a walk, but from a distance. On Wednesday, he reportedly consumed alcohol and approached her in a bid to strike a conversation with her. When Kalra saw a stranger trying to speak to her under the influence of alcohol, she ignored him. This enraged Sanjay and he allegedly attacked and smashed her head with a stone.
Joint commissioner of police, northern range, Rajesh Khurana said, “Sanjay was infatuated with Kalra, which she had no clue about. He often saw her taking a walk from a distance. On Wednesday, Sanjay consumed alcohol with his friends and went to the park. On spotting Kalra, he followed her and then tried to get close. She realised that he was drunk and ignored him, which infuriated him.”
Police sources said that Sanjay first tried to speak to Kalra but she told him to stay away as he was drunk and tried to walk off. The accused, however, kept talking to her. As Kalra kept walking and ignoring him, he allegedly got angry, picked up a stone and attacked her. He hit her on the head repeatedly till she collapsed on the ground, bleeding. Sanjay then fled the spot.
Sources said that Sanjay had gone to the park with two of his friends whom he asked to stand outside. “His friends were aware
of his intentions but did not know that he would attack her. Sanjay went to speak to Kalra as his friends stood at a distance and watched,” a police officer said.
Following the incident, the police registered a case of attempt to murder and started their search to nab the accused. During investigation, a dozen teams consisting over 100 police personnel was formed and over 60 suspects from nearby areas rounded up. “The inspection of the spot confirmed that a regular visitor to the park was behind the attack. Since the park sprawled on a huge area, the accused managed to escape easily, which told us that he was well-versed with the park’s topography.,” Khurana said.
Sources said Sanjay’s friends were identified first and called for questioning. Since they were the only eyewitnesses in the case, they narrated the episode and Sanjay was nabbed.