Ahmedabad: A 25-year-old man was stabbed to death barely 100m from the Crime Branch office and Gaekwad Haveli police station late Wednesday night. Police said the murder stemmed from a dispute linked to a mobile game, while the victim’s family has alleged that the accused were under the influence of drugs and acted out of personal enmity.The victim, Akash Od, a salesman at a sari shop in Ratan Pol, was attacked near Alankar Driving School in Jamalpur around 10pm on Wednesday, police said. He died on the spot from multiple stab wounds.
Gaekwad Haveli police said they cracked the case within hours and arrested three accused — Meet Rathod (20), Shahid Pathan (22), and Sohil Neerashi (19). The trio was booked for murder and abetment under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). According to police, the murder was the fallout of a quarrel that broke out a day earlier when the accused and the victim argued while playing a mbole game near a residential complex. Though a temporary compromise was reached, the accused allegedly held a grudge and followed Akash the next night before attacking him with a knife. “The accused chased the victim and attacked him with a sharp weapon, leading to fatal injuries,” an officer said.On the motive of the offence, cops said that on Tuesday, at around 10.30pm, Rathod was sitting below Suvidha Flats when Od arrived with two other friends on a motorcycle. The accused and the deceased got into a heated argument and fought. Due to this, the accused nursed a grudge.On Wednesday night, the accused and his friends followed Od and the three persons accompanying him, stopped them near Alankar Driving School while Rathod stabbed Od multiple times, causing his death. However, the victim’s family has refuted the mobile game angle. Od’s brother, Jayesh, Od, who filed the complaint, alleged that the accused were intoxicated. “This was not about a game. My brother was killed due to personal rivalry and drug abuse. They were under the influence of MD drugs,” he alleged.
