Noida: Made to wait for golgappa, man stabs street vendor

A 30-year-old street vendor was allegedly stabbed with a knife by a man who refused to wait in the queue and demanded to be served golpappe first at Baraula village in Noida on Saturday evening, the police said on Sunday, adding that the suspect is currently on the run.

The victim, Ravindra Kumar, was taken to a nearby private hospital and his condition is stated to be stable, police said.

According to police, Kumar,30, originally from Badaun, lives with his family in Baraula village and runs a roadside golgappa cart in the same area. On Saturday around 7:45 pm, Kumar was approached by the suspect, Vikas Sharma, 27, who is also a resident of the same neighbourhood and demanded to be served first.

“When Kumar asked him to wait in the queue, Sharma became aggressive and the situation escalated . When Kumar tried to maintain order and asked him to stop his unruly behaviour, a dispute between the two erupted. During the heated argument, the suspect allegedly took out a knife from his pocket and stabbed Kumar in the abdomen,” said Sandeep Chaudhary, station house officer, Sector 49.

SHO added, “Following the incident, the suspect fled the scene while threatening the victim with dire consequences. The injured vendor was quickly taken to a nearby hospital with the help of neighbours and friends, and the police were alerted through the emergency helpline number.”

Based on a complaint filed by the victim’s brother, Harendra,30, at Sector 49 police station, an FIR was registered against the suspect under sections 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by a dangerous weapon) of the Indian Penal Code.

“The victim is under treatment and is told to be out of danger. Meanwhile, efforts are underway to locate and arrest the suspect,” the officer added.