Mumbai train station stabbing: Accused held within 12 hours after professor's murder

Mumbai: A 27-year-old daily-wage worker has been arrested for allegedly stabbing a college professor to death at Malad railway station, with Government Railway Police (GRP) tracing and apprehending the accused within 12 hours of the killing, officials said on Sunday.

The victim, identified as 33-year-old Alok Kumar Singh, taught mathematics and statistics at NM College and was travelling home when a brief altercation with a co-passenger turned fatal, police said.

Argument over alighting spirals into fatal attack

According to the Borivali GRP, the accused, Omkar Eknath Shinde, got into a minor dispute with Singh as passengers prepared to step off a Borivali-bound local train on Saturday evening. The confrontation escalated rapidly, and Shinde allegedly stabbed Singh in the abdomen with a sharp object on platform 1 of Malad station before fleeing into the crowd.

A police official said the sequence unfolded “suddenly”, adding that the attacker “got off the train, and fled”. Singh was rushed to Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital in Kandivali, where he was declared dead.

Police said Singh had boarded the train at Vile Parle shortly before 6 pm and sustained a single, deep wound to the stomach.

CCTV footage leads investigators to suspect

Investigators tracked Shinde to the Kurar area of Mumbai’s western suburbs, using CCTV surveillance footage from Malad and preceding stations. Witness statements from fellow commuters who “saw the accused and overheard the argument” are being recorded, an officer said.

Shinde, employed in metal polishing, has been booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Further investigation is underway, police said.

Victim remembered as ‘calm and polite’ teacher

Colleagues at NM College described Singh as a soft-spoken educator who joined the junior college faculty in 2024.

“He was a kind soul, calm and polite and never used to get involved in arguments or fights. In fact, he used to help in resolving fights. This is absolutely shocking for us,” a teacher said.

Another colleague noted he had left the college for home between 5.15 pm and 5.30 pm that evening.

According to TOI, Singh lived in Malad East with his wife. A relative said, “He was a simple person and we had never seen him get angry over anything. He got married only a couple of years ago and lived in Malad East with his wife. His father worked for BJP leader Rajnath Singh in Delhi. His uncle was also a teacher. We are aghast at what has happened and want police to track down the culprit at the earliest.”

(With PTI inputs)