‘I’m dying’: Guard recalls supervisor’s distress call in Mira Road stabbing case

New Delhi: “I’m dying! I’m dying! Please save me!” Caught between life and death, Rajesh Mishra Confronted with a knife, he shouted into the phone, his voice tense.Supervisor Rajesh Mishra was seriously injured while interceding with guard Subroto Sen, who himself escaped a fatal knife attack by Zaib Zuber Ansari.The injured Subroto Sen rushed to the back of the building and waited painfully for the tragedy to happen.Subroto Sen, who narrated to the police the series of events that left him and his superiors seriously injured on that horrific night on Mumbai’s Mira Road, claimed that 31-year-old Zaib Zuber Ansari had approached him hours before he arrived with the intention of killing someone.“He asked, ‘Is there a mosque ahead?’ I replied, ‘Yes, there is a mosque ahead on the right. ” He then asked, “What is the name of the mosque?” I told him, “I don’t know the name of the mosque.” Zuber then asked, “Are you a Hindu?” “My answer is ‘yes,'” Sen said, according to news agency IANS. He said the defendant initially walked away. But a few hours later, around 4 a.m., when Subroto walked to a tea stall, he spotted Zuber again.When he returned to his post at 4.30am, he felt an uneasy feeling. Zub is following him!Before he could react, the defendant allegedly pulled out a knife, grabbed Subroto’s arm and lunged at him. Subroto tried to fight back, but not before being stabbed.To escape, he pushed his attacker away and ran towards the cabin of his supervisor, Rajkumar Mishra.“However, Zuber also entered the hut. Mishra was sitting on a chair inside. Before I could explain the situation or he could understand what was happening, Zuber immediately asked as soon as he saw Mishra, ‘You are a Hindu too, aren’t you? If not, recite the karma’.” Mishra could not recite Karma. Zuber then began stabbing him repeatedly with a knife. Mishra was sitting in a chair, unable to defend himself effectively. ” Subroto said.Fearing for his life, Subroto fled toward the back of the building. After some time, when the situation seemed to have calmed down, he called Mishra’s mobile phone. Mishra replied, pleading in agony: “I’m dying! I’m dying! Please save me!”According to police officials, around 4 a.m. on Monday, the accused approached guards stationed at a building under construction near Wockhardt Hospital. He reportedly asked them to recite the Karma, an important Islamic statement of faith, before launching the attack.Ansari was detained in connection with the attack, in which he allegedly asked victims about their religious identities before attacking them with a knife, in what investigators suspect may have been a lone-wolf incident by militants.The victims, Rajkumar Mishra and Subroto Sen, were seriously injured and were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Mishra managed to reach the hospital on his own despite his poor health, while Sen was helped by local resident Nayab Shaikh.Following the attack, police swung into action, scanning CCTV footage in the area to track down the suspect. Ansari was tracked down and arrested within about 90 minutes. He was later taken to Naya Nagar police station where a case was registered against him on charges including attempt to murder and inciting enmity between communities.After his arrest, Ansari was produced before a court in Thane, which remanded him to police custody till May 4.The investigation has since expanded, with local police working with the state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Investigators are examining electronic devices seized from the defendants to determine whether the attack was an isolated act or part of a larger plan.According to IANS, preliminary findings showed that the annotations contained words such as “ISIS”, “lone wolf”, “jihad” and “Gaza”.The agency also claims Ansari spent several years in the United States, where his family continues to reside. He reportedly returned to India after failing to secure stable employment.Back in India, he lived alone in Mira Road and made a living by taking online chemistry courses.Investigators suspect he may have been radicalized through material obtained online.