What began as a late-night scuffle on New Year’s Day spiralled into a brutal killing in Jujhar Nagar, exposing the violent underbelly of celebratory chaos.

A young man was stabbed to death in a narrow lane, sparking panic in the neighbourhood and triggering an overnight manhunt by the Mohali police.

Investigators said that the trouble erupted on January 1 on street number 11, where Mohit Baghel reportedly got into a heated altercation with a group of local youths.

When word reached his family, relative Lakhan Singh Baghel rushed to the spot with his sons, Mukesh and Birjesh, hoping to defuse the situation and take Mohit home safely. Instead, the confrontation exploded into deadly violence.

Police said the attackers turned on the family during the intervention. In a chilling sequence of events, two of the accused — Arjun and Chaturbhuji — allegedly grabbed Mukesh from behind, pinning his arms. Moments later, Shiv Kumar, known by the alias Sibbu, is accused of pulling out a knife and stabbing Mukesh in the abdomen.

The blow proved fatal. Mukesh collapsed on the street and died shortly after, leaving the area stunned as New Year celebrations turned into mourning.

The case prompted swift action from the Balongi police. Inspector Parivinkal Grewal, SHO of the Balongi Police Station, said teams immediately launched raids, scanning CCTV footage from nearby streets and using technical intelligence to track the suspects. Within hours, Chaturbhuji alias Ajay Mishra was arrested.

The dragnet tightened further on January 2, leading to the arrest of the prime accused Shiv Kumar alias Sibbu, along with Arjun Mishra and Manish Kumar alias Munna.

A case has been registered under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including murder, unlawful assembly, rioting with a deadly weapon, and criminal intimidation.

Police are now interrogating the accused and working to recover the knife used in the attack, even as residents demand stricter night patrols to prevent such flare-ups from turning fatal again.