A woman and her teenage son were found murdered inside their home in Block F of Lajpat Nagar-I, Delhi, on Wednesday night. The shocking crime has left the neighbourhood in deep fear and disbelief.

The victims were identified as 42-year-old Ruchika Sewani and her 14-year-old son, Krish Sewani. Both were found with their throats slit inside their house. The murders came to light around 10 pm on Wednesday when Kuldeep Sewani, Ruchika’s husband, returned home from his garment shop in Lajpat Nagar central market and noticed bloodstains on the staircase. He had been calling his wife but received no response.

“There was blood all over the house,” say police

A police officer present at the scene said, “There was blood all over the house. The woman was lying dead, with her throat slit, in a room on the floor next to the bed. When we opened the washroom, the son was lying dead inside, with his throat slit as well.”

The incident shocked the neighbourhood. Locals gathered outside the building on Thursday morning after the news spread. One of the neighbours, 22-year-old Arnav Chopra, said, “This has never happened here in this area. Not even an assault has been reported here in recent history. It’s shocking.”

According to police, Kuldeep last spoke to Ruchika around 7:15 pm, and she seemed completely fine at that time. Ruchika’s mother, 60-year-old Rekha Makhija, also spoke to her daughter on the phone earlier that day. “I spoke to her around 4:30 pm. She said she was at the shop, as Kuldeep had gone out for some work. I haven’t heard her voice since,” she said, crying heavily outside the house.

Accused was a worker at the family’s shop

The police have arrested 24-year-old Mukesh Paswan, a helper at Kuldeep’s garment shop, in connection with the double murder. Paswan reportedly told the police that he was upset because Ruchika had scolded him that morning for being absent from work for over a week.

An officer said, “It was revealed that he had taken ₹40,000 in advance and was also given a mobile phone by the family. Ruchika told him to either come to work or return the money.”

Feeling humiliated, Paswan decided to kill Ruchika and also murdered her son Krish, who may have witnessed the crime. “The man killed him because our child saw the murder. A bright life was cut short,” said Varsha Sachdeva, Ruchika’s maternal aunt.

The police found a knife at the scene, but they are still trying to confirm whether it was the weapon used in the murder.

The Sewani family had been living in the building for more than 10 years after moving from old Lajpat Nagar. They owned four floors of the five-storey building. Their daughter, 21-year-old Kritika, is currently studying in Jammu and rushed to Delhi after hearing the tragic news.

Krish was a Class 10 student at Tagore International School and was passionate about cricket. His cousin, 18-year-old Hriday Makhija, said, “He was playing for a private club called Uttarakhand Strikers as well. He wanted to opt for commerce next year, after which he either wanted to pursue cricket or join his father’s business.”

The family had been running the garment business since the time of Kuldeep’s grandfather. Many in the market knew them well.

Satbir Singh, who runs a garment shop next to Kuldeep’s, said, “We will think twice before trusting our helpers.” Another helper at the shop, Surender Kumar, said Paswan was quiet and sometimes lazy. “Kuldeep ji never scolded him. But he would sometimes get angry,” he added.

The investigation is ongoing, and police are trying to gather more evidence in the case. The entire Lajpat Nagar community is still struggling to understand how such a brutal crime could take place in their peaceful neighbourhood.

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