'Didn't try…': Mother of 17-year-old killed in Delhi's Seelampur alleges police inaction

The mother of a 17-year-old boy who was stabbed to death in the Seelampur area of the national capital said on Friday that she had not been given any updates from the police, alleging complicity by the authorities in catching the culprits and allowing the perpetrators to flee the area.

"My son fought a few days ago. There was some incident, and my son was just standing there and watching as he got beaten up; they gave threats. We had taken him to the hospital; we had not eaten anything for two days. When my kid came back, he had asked for a samosa and milk and had gone out to get the food. He went out around 7 o'clock, and by 7:15, we got the news that our son had been stabbed," the mother told ANI.

She further said that the doctor who had treated the child was also beaten up by some people.

Alleging complicity by the police, she continued, "The police did not try to catch anyone. Currently, the police are not taking any action. The people escaped; they locked their houses and left. The people also used to say that they would beat children up, kill them. Police have not said anything yet to us either."

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Locals in the Seelampur area continued their protest from last night against the stabbing of the 17-year-old boy in the area, blocking roads and holding signs demanding justice for the boy.

Meanwhile, police officials have said that they have deployed teams to identify and apprehend the culprit as the investigation is currently ongoing.

Visuals from the area showed hundreds of locals blocking the roads late at night on April 17, and on the morning of Friday, they continued the protest. The locals were seen shouting slogans demanding justice and holding cards written with 'Modi ji madad karo, Yogi model chahiye' (PM Modi, help us, we need the Yogi model).

"Since 2012, murders have started happening in the area. In 2010, my boy was stabbed, and since then, there have been six murders. We are facing numerous difficulties here. The primary objective is to encourage people to sell their houses and relocate from the area. There is a fear, and we want our kids to go away from here. The people who stay here do so out of helplessness," said one of the locals protesting to ANI.

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Another protestor claimed that women also get harassed a lot in the area and despite complaints, no action has been taken, "If girls go out to get some stuff, then they (men) will blow cigarette smoke on their faces. They hurl abuses at girls, grab their hands, we have complained before, but no action has been taken."

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police of the northeast area, Sandeep Lamba, assured that the accused will be caught soon as authorities conduct raids in the area.

"We are conducting raids. The accused will be caught soon. Investigation is underway," he said.

According to the Delhi police, the 17-year-old victim was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to his injuries during treatment.