Quarrel over common water tap leaves 1 dead in Shahdara

The 15-year-old girl, who had stabbed the woman with a kitchen knife on Friday, was apprehended on Sunday and sent to an observation home

A SQUABBLE over filling water from a common tap on Friday morning took a fatal turn by the evening when a teenage girl stabbed her neighbour – a 34year-old woman – to death with a kitchen knife, police said.

The incident took place in a colony in Shahdara area, police said, adding the 15-year-old girl, who had stabbed the woman in the stomach and left hand, was apprehended on sunday and sent to an observation home.

DCP (Shahdara) Surendra Chaudhary said that on April 12, around 11 pm, they received ap cr call from a man informing them that his wife has been stabbed in the stomach and is lying unconscious.

She was rushed to the Hedgewar Hospital where she was declared brought dead.

Added thedcp ,“it came to our knowledge that the deceased and her husband had a fight with their neighbour, his wife and their daughter ,15. a case of murder has been lodged .” around 7.30 am, the teenage girl and her mother had an argument with their next-door neighbour over filling water from the common tap on the first floor of the house.

Said an officer, “During the fight, the woman twisted the girl' s hand after which she was taken to the hospital for treatment.”

On returning, the minor girl and her mother returned to their home and resumed their fight with the neighbouring couple. “During this scuffle, the minor girl, in the heat of the moment, picked up a knife from her house and stabbed the woman in the stomach,” said an officer.

Explaining the layout of the building, the DCP said there are four rooms on the first floor of the house – three of these are occupied by three separate families while one is with the owner.

All the occupants of these rooms use a common washroom and a tap. “There is a small space near the tap which is used by all the tenants for washing clothes and utensils,” added the DCP.

On the day of the incident, in the morning, the mother of the minor girl was seen filling water inside a tub to wash clothes. The victim, who also wanted to soak her utensils under the tap, removed the tub before it could be filled, said police. An argument en sued between the two sides but was brought under control by the neighb ours. however, the fight resumed after the victim' s husband came home drunk and started abusing the family of the minor.

Said the DCP, “.... it came to our knowledge that such type of arguments have happened earlier between the tenants though most of them were resolved amicably and none were reported to police.”

Shortage a common problem: Residents

Complaints regarding shortage of water and erratic hours of supply were common in the area, said residents. Though this leads to hassle, such an incident has never been reported before.

Said a resident: “Most houses here have a water tap which is connected to the water tank above...water comes during early morning and evening hours for 30 minutes each. If you don't fill by that time, there is nothing to fall back on. There are days when there is no water supply at all.”

Said another resident: “Water comes for a very short duration here...usually, if several tenants live in one house, it becomes a struggle as there is only one tap for each house.”

On the quality of water, the residents said it was not worth drinking on most days. “Most of the time, the water is dirty and we have to buy bottled water for Rs 30 from vendors ... those who can not afford the bottles are forced to drink the tap water,” said a woman.

According to another neighbour: “Often, the water is so dirty that even the motor gets clogged due to all the dirt...”

Neighbours said fights were common in the building due to erratic and limited water supply