Woman, 36, murdered in workshop

A 36-year-old woman was murdered by unidentified assailants at her book-binding workshop in East Delhi’s Shakarpur area on Wednesday afternoon. The motive behind the incident is still unclear, said the police. The victim has been identified as Zairul Isha Khan. She was a widow and is survived by three daughters.

At about 2.20 pm on Wednesday, the police received a call from the victim’s employees at the workshop that she has been murdered by unidentified men.

“When we reached there, we learnt that two men had come at about 1.30 pm to the workshop posing as customers,” said a senior police officer, adding, “While one of the employees, Manoranjan, went to get tea for them, the other, Prem Shankar, was pushed against the wall at gunpoint by one of the assailants.”

The police said that the other assailant grabbed the victim and slit her throat with a sharp object. The duo then fled the spot. Prem Shankar immediately informed the police about the incident. The victim’s body was sent for an autopsy. A case of murder has been registered at the Shakarpur police station and further investigations are on.

The police added that the victim’s husband, Shaukat, had died a few years ago after which she used to look after the book-binding and printing press workshop. The victim stayed with her three daughters in East Delhi’s West Vinod Nagar locality. Investigating officials said that the motive for the murder is still not known and they are questioning both Manoranjan and Prem Shankar.

Their mobile call details are also being scrutinised. “The assailants did not come to rob the workshop and they took nothing,” said the investigating official, adding, “It seems that there is an involvement of an insider and we are probing the case from all possible angles.”