Two youths stabbed to death in Panipat, 12 booked; probe on

Two youths were brutally stabbed to death in Jasbir Colony of the Noorwala area in Panipat late Tuesday night. The victims, identified as 18-year-old Sooraj and Neeraj, were close friends and residents of the colony.

Following a complaint by Neeraj’s father, Vinod Kumar, the Tehsil Camp police have registered a case against 12 accused and launched an investigation.

According to Vinod Kumar, his son Neeraj and his friend Sooraj had gone for a walk around 9 pm. “A short while later, I received a call from Neeraj’s phone, informing me that he had been seriously injured and was lying in a vacant plot near Jasbir Colony,” he said.

Upon reaching the spot, he found a police team from DIAL 112 already present, with Neeraj lying in a pool of blood. He rushed his son to the civil hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Sooraj had been admitted to the hospital earlier and was referred to PGIMS Rohtak for advanced treatment. However, before he could be shifted, he also succumbed to his injuries.

It later emerged that both Neeraj and Sooraj had been attacked with sharp-edged weapons. Vinod Kumar alleged that the murders were carried out by Happy Tomar, Gaurav alias Jalebi, Jony, Sunny Banjara, Ghazni, Moda, Kuldeep, Ranjeet, Aryan alias Mota and Vikul, among others.

Neeraj was a Class 10 student and the only son in his family. Sooraj, originally from Nepal, had dropped out of school after Class 11 and was working in a cloth godown at night while assisting in a property dealer’s office during the day.

Following the complaint, the police registered a case against all 12 accused and began a probe. Superintendent of Police (SP) visited the crime scene on Wednesday and formed four teams to arrest those involved in the double murder. Meanwhile, after the post-mortem examination, the bodies of the deceased were handed over to their families.