Rush-hour argument ends in fatal stabbing of professor at Mumbai train station

Dubai: The Government Railway Police (GRP) have arrested a 27-year-old daily-wage labourer for the brutal stabbing murder of a college professor at Mumbai’s crowded Malad Railway Station, Indian media reports said.

The accused has been identified as Omkar Eknath Shinde, a metal-polishing worker. He was apprehended from the Kurar area in the western suburbs within 12 hours of the crime, The Hindu reported, after police tracked him using CCTV footage.

The victim, Alok Kumar Singh, was a professor at NM College in Vile Parle.

The stabbing took place on Saturday evening on Platforms 1 and 2 of Malad station, one of the busiest points on Mumbai’s local train network, NDTV said.

A minor argument between Singh and Shinde while they were alighting from a local train escalated into a violent confrontation, The Hindu reported.

NDTV said the dispute began over the crowded compartment gates, a common flashpoint during rush hours. As both men stepped onto the platform, Shinde allegedly pulled out a sharp knife and stabbed Singh multiple times in the abdomen before fleeing into the crowd.

Immediate trigger

Singh was rushed to a hospital but was declared dead, The Hindu reported.

CCTV cameras captured a man in a white shirt and blue jeans fleeing across a Foot Over Bridge (FOB) shortly after the attack. Using the footage and technical intelligence, police traced and arrested Shinde.

While the immediate trigger appears to be the argument over boarding and alighting, senior officials told NDTV the brutality of the assault has raised questions.

“Though the dispute over getting down from the train is the reported cause, we are investigating whether there was any prior enmity or other factors behind such a violent outburst,” a police official said.

Shinde has been booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Singh’s body has been sent for post-mortem examination, and further investigation is underway.