Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: “I’m going to die! I’m going to die! Please save me!” Caught between life and death, Rajesh Mishra cried out over the phone, his voice strained, as an attacker kept flailing a knife at him.Rajesh Mishra, a supervisor, was trying to reach out to Subroto Sen, a guard who himself had escaped the same fatal knife attack that was being carried out by Zaib Zuber Ansari.Wounded Subroto Sen had rushed to the back of the building and waited in distress for what appered to be the tragedy to pass.Narrating to the police the sequence of events from the horrifying night in Mumbai’s Mira Road that left him and his supervisor seriously injured, Subroto Sen claimed Zaib Zuber Ansari, 31, had approched him hours before he came with an intent to kill.“He asked, ‘Is there a mosque ahead?’ I replied, ‘Yes, there is a mosque ahead on the right side.’ He then asked, ‘What is the name of the mosque?’ I told him, ‘I do not know the name of the mosque.’ Zuber then asked, ‘Are you a Hindu?’ I answered ‘yes’,” Sen stated, according to news agency IANS. He said the accused initially walked away. But hours later, around 4 am, when Subroto stepped out to a tea stall, he spotted Zuber there again.By 4.30 am, as he returned to his duty post, a sense of unease set in. Zuber was following him!Before he could react, the accused allegedly pulled out a knife, grabbed Subroto by the arm, and lunged. Subroto tried to fight back, but not before suffering a knife injury.In a desperate bid to escape, he pushed the attacker away and ran towards his supervisor Rajkumar Mishra’s cabin.“However, Zuber entered the cabin as well. Mishra was seated on a chair inside. Before I could explain the situation or he could comprehend what was happening, Zuber — upon seeing Mishra — immediately demanded, ‘You are a Hindu too, aren’t you? If not, recite the Kalma’. Mishra was unable to recite the Kalma. Following this, Zuber began repeatedly stabbing him with the knife. Being seated in the chair, Mishra was unable to defend himself effectively,” Subroto said.Fearing for his life, Subroto fled towards the back of the building. After some time, when the situation appeared to calm down, he called Mishra’s mobile phone. Mishra answered and, in distress, pleaded, “I’m going to die! I’m going to die! Please save me!”According to police officials, the accused approached the guards stationed at an under-construction building near Wockhardt Hospital in the early hours of Monday, around 4.00 am. He reportedly asked them to recite the Kalma, an important Islamic declaration of faith, before launching the attack.Ansari has been taken into custody in connection with the attack, during which he allegedly questioned the victims about their religious identity before assaulting them with a knife, in what investigators suspect could be a lone wolf-style incident by a radicalised individual.The victims, Rajkumar Mishra and Subroto Sen, suffered serious injuries and were admitted to a nearby hospital for treatment. Mishra managed to reach the hospital on his own despite his condition, while Sen was helped by a local resident, Nayab Sheikh.Police moved swiftly after the attack, scanning CCTV footage from the area to trace the suspect. Ansari was tracked down and apprehended within roughly 90 minutes. He was later taken to Naya Nagar Police Station, where a case was registered against him under charges including attempted murder and promoting enmity between communities.Following his arrest, Ansari was produced before a court in Thane, which remanded him to police custody until May 4.The probe has since widened, with local police working alongside the state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Investigators are examining electronic devices seized from the accused to establish whether the attack was an isolated act or part of a larger design.Preliminary findings, point to notes containing references such as “ISIS”, “lone wolf”, “jihad”, and “Gaza”, reported IANS.The agency also claimed Ansari had spent several years in the United States, where members of his family continue to reside. He reportedly returned to India after failing to secure stable employment.Back in India, he lived alone in Mira Road and earned a living by taking online chemistry classes.Investigators suspect he may have been radicalised through material accessed online.
