He drank a lot but never got angry, say neighbours

Family, friends of man accused of killing Junaid come out strongly in his defence

June 28, 2017 01:56 am | Updated 07:40 am IST - Palwal

An alcoholic and a recluse but never one to lose his temper — this was how the neighbours described Ramesh Kumar, the man from Palwal who allegedly murdered 15-year-old Junaid and attacked his two brothers on a crowded local train last week.

Kumar allegedly confessed to stabbing Junaid and his brothers under the influence of alcohol, but his family and friends insisted that no matter how much Kumar drank, he never became violent.

‘Never raised his voice’

His wife Seema said: “He would never leave a chance to turn to the bottle. That kept him away from both home and work as he would just pass out at any random spot or avoid returning home altogether. But he never raised his voice, let alone turn violent, when I chided him for his habits.”

 

His mother-in-law Memwati blamed alcohol for his reclusive nature. “He had no friends or enemies. He kept no relations with his stepbrother or grandfather in their native village Kanjarpur. His father died a few years ago.”

Despite the reclusive life he led, a surprisingly high number of people in Palwal came out to defend Kumar and repeatedly claimed that though he used to drink a lot he never got angry.

Neighbours like Ajit, a former Navy man, or Kishan and Satender, both shopkeepers, believe he is innocent. “It’s because he never indulged in any fight with us,” is what all of them said.

In defending Kumar, Ajit maintained that the confession made by Kumar might go against him as “nobody knows what led to it”.

Devender, another neighbour, was more hyperbolic. That the police recovered Kumar’s blood-stained clothes has never been said on record, but the theory has gained traction in the locality.

Devendra’s spirited defence even rejected that as credible evidence. “There was once a shooting incident outside my shop and my clothes were stained while saving the injured person. Maybe he was doing the same,” he said.

The family is not even ready to believe that Kumar was present in the train. Seema said he was at a local eatery and had even bought some snack and drinks for them. One of Kumar’s daughter, Kirti, nodded in agreement.

Train travel

They were at a loss to explain what he was doing on the train travelling in the opposite direction to the one he should have been taking to report for duty that evening.

Kumar had recently got a job as labourer in a factory in Faridabad with a salary of around ₹6,000 a month. His first cheque was to come on July 10. Junaid’s brothers have accused Kumar of making derogatory references to Islam and calling them beef-eaters, but Memwati said that they have a pet cow at home but they don’t worship it.

“Food and religion are the least discussed issues in the vegetarian household. Hindus and Muslims both eat meat, why would we have a problem,” she said.

While Kumar’s family said he was not affiliated to any political outfit, his neighbours claimed he was illiterate and too much of a recluse to be fit for any political activity.

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