British novelist JK Rowling once said: "Some wounds run too deep for the healing." And it looks like this was exactly the case with a Delhi man, who shot dead his colleague after being diagnosed with throat cancer. His colleague was reportedly the one who introduced him to smoking.
Mustakeem Ahmad, who works as a cook in a restaurant in Uttam Nagar, West Delhi, was arrested on Friday, and he told the police that he had practised shooting for a while so that he wouldn't miss the target – his colleague from Myanmar, Inayat. The duo worked as chefs at Ahmad's brother-in-law's restaurant.
"Though Ahmad and Inayat were friends at the workplace, Inayat was reportedly better at his job and well-behaved and soon became the favourite of the restaurant owner," Hindustan Times quoted Shibesh Singh, DCP (southwest), as saying. This seems to have initially triggered the animosity.
As Ahmad was disturbed with this development, he is said to have started smoking cigarettes and later also took a liking to smoking marijuana, which was introduced to him by Inayat. He then reportedly developed a throat infection and was diagnosed with cancer, which according to his doctor was due to excessive smoking.
"In the course of time, Ahmad developed throat infection, forcing him to consult a doctor. Ahmad has claimed that the doctor told him he had developed throat cancer due to excessive smoking," Singh added.
Ahmad then blamed Inayat for getting him addicted to smoking, and his health issues and mental state seem to have had an effect on his work too. He went back home to Amroha in Uttar Pradesh after he was fired from his job and that is where he is said to have bought the pistol and practised shooting.
"He first practised firing in his village, before returning to Delhi a few days ago," the DCP explained. Once he was back in Delhi, he is said to have visited the restaurant, and asked his brother-in-law to fire Inayat. When his request was declined, he decided to act on his plan to kill Inayat.
"He was carrying his loaded pistol to the restaurant and had planned to kill Inayat if he failed to get him fired from the job. That is what eventually happened. Ahmad ended up picking a fight with Inayat. He later shot at him in the middle of the argument," said an investigator.
Inayat was taken to the hospital but succumbed and Ahmad was arrested after a chase.
