What was initially thought to be a case of attempted murder has been exposed as one of stab injuries that a 22-year-old Mumbai man inflicted on himself after his girlfriend refused to share her Snapchat password with him.
According to the police, Rizwan Shaikh, an air conditioner mechanic from Bhandup, has been dating a girl for the past couple of months. As he was insecure in their relationship, he had gained access to her Instagram and Facebook accounts.
“Recently, he came to know that his girlfriend is also on Snapchat. He then started insisting that she share its password as well with him,” said an officer. However, the girl opposed his request.
On Monday, Shaikh went to pick her up at her college in Thane, after which they came and sat near Dreams Mall near the Bhandup railway station.
“Around 3.30 pm, Shaikh again requested the girl to share the password. As she refused, he got a knife from his vehicle and stabbed himself on his stomach,” said the police officer.
The girlfriend, who was left scared after the incident, wrapped her scarf around the wound and then they went home.
Shaikh’s 64-year-old father, Mohamed Islam Abdul Gafar Shaikh, complained to the police that his son had gone to repair an air conditioner at Gadhav Naka in Bhandup and while returning, he had an altercation with three unknown people after he overtook their vehicle. His complaint further said the three people stabbed him and escaped from the spot, leaving him grievously injured.
The Bhandup police then registered a case of attempt to murder against three unknown people.
“In the hunt for leads, we started scrutinising CCTV footage. After checking for over seven hours, we could not locate Shaikh anywhere near the spot,” said the police officer. “We then got his call data records and noticed that he had never visited Gadhav Naka.”
The police also reviewed the numbers frequently dialled from Shaikh’s phone and identified his girlfriend, whom they questioned about the events surrounding his injuries.
The police said the college student revealed the whole incident, which was later verified through the CCTV footage from near Dreams Mall.
“We have not arrested anyone. Shaikh is still recuperating in the hospital. We are yet to take a call on whether to book him in the case for providing false information, but we will file a chargesheet in the case according to our findings,” the officer said.