New Delhi: A dispute over a seat reserved for senior citizens inside a Delhi Metro train turned deadly after a 48-year-old commuter died following an alleged assault, police said on Sunday.
The victim has been identified as Pawan Sharma. A retired IAS officer, Sanjay Pratap Singh, and his son, Sidharth Singh, have been arrested in connection with the case, police sources said. Sidharth Singh is a lawyer who practises in the Supreme Court.
According to the FIR, the incident occurred on October 8 inside a Metro train near the Supreme Court station. Sharma allegedly became involved in a heated argument with the two accused after a dispute arose over a seat meant for elderly passengers, as reported by NDTV.
During the altercation, Sharma was allegedly slapped and pushed, police said. He fell to the ground and sustained head injuries. Metro staff rushed him to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital in an ambulance, where doctors declared him dead.
The case was registered on October 9 at the Supreme Court Metro police station after Sharma’s mother, Durga Sharma, filed a complaint. It has been registered under Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Police sources said both accused were taken into custody after the FIR was registered. They were later produced before a court and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.
Sanjay Pratap Singh, according to police sources, is a former IAS officer who had earlier been arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation in connection with an alleged bribery case.
Investigators said they are probing the circumstances that led to the confrontation and are trying to establish the exact cause of Sharma’s death. Further details are awaited.