A 45-year old cab driver, Aftab Alam was murdered on September 6 while he was returning from Bulandshahr. Police have denied the claims made by the deceased’s kin alleging it to be a hate crime.
“We had received information on Monday night about possible criminal activity in a cab travelling from Bulandshahr. By 9.30 pm, Dadri Police had been alerted and they located the Swift Dzire within their jurisdiction. The driver was found with head injuries while the accused had escaped. A clip is going viral in which the accused can be heard asking someone to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’. They are not asking the driver; in fact they were talking to another person while they had stopped to buy something. There is no communal angle to this case and it appears the accused had a history,” stated Rajiv Kumar, ACP 2 Zone 2 Noida.
While the eldest son of Aftab, Sarib alleged it to be a hate crime as the passengers asked him to chant “Jai Shri Ram” before murdering him.
Sarib told the police that he had received a call from his father before the killing which he had recorded.
Aftab’s son Sarib told, “He got a call from his father at 7.57 pm when he was near a toll plaza in Greater Noida, and the phone was later kept on the side while the conversation was being recorded. At 8.39 minute, the accused can be heard laughing and saying “Bol Jai Shri Ram…” and then “Bhai tu Jai Shri Ram bol” a few seconds later. The other person’s response is not audible.”
As per the family, the battery died within 15 minutes after which they approached a local police station in Delhi.
Sarib told that his father loved his job as a cab driver and received several calls from strangers talking about his father’s nature and goodwill. This was his first time to serve such unruly passengers.
“We live in Trilokpuri and almost anyone who has been in his cab can attest to the fact that he was a nice person. No one had a grievance against him. In fact, the person who had sent him to drop passengers in Bulandshahr cannot find words to express himself; he feels so guilty. He was taken away from us in such a brutal fashion,” said Sarib.
Sarib also stated, “My mother is a housewife and I am in my third year of college. But the responsibility is on me now. This was a hate crime; I plan to get the FIR changed to mention the part where they forced him to chant Jai Shri Ram. Justice needs to be done.”
An FIR has been registered under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code in Badlapur police station
Aftab has left behind three children and his wife who live in Mayur Vihar. Under a finance scheme, he had bought a Swift Dzire a few years back and was working overtime to pay the debts.
