21% of murders in last four years over trivial issues: Cops

NEW DELHI: A father murdering his son for being denied his fair share in dinner isn't unusual in a city that witnesses murders over the pettiest of reasons. In statistics mentioned by Delhi Police, around 19-21% of all murders committed in the capital in the past four years were due to provocation over trivial issues.
"Many murders in the past few years have taken place in a fit of rage and without planning.Most of those who carried out a murder neither had criminal motive nor were they criminals. In fact, 90% of the people arrested on murder charges this year are novices," said a senior crime branch officer.
The Delhi Police recently updated a list of the most bizarre reasons for murder this year on its official website. "The reasons this year include an argument over who will get the bigger share of a blanket (PS South Rohini), refusal to pay the food bill (PS Kalyanpuri), 'excessive' crying by an infant (PS Jyoti Nagar), not paying for a glass of juice (PS Alipur), denying liquor (PS Dwarka South), refusing to hand over a half-burned biri (PS Safdarjung Enclave), and an argument over Rs 150 (PS Mangol Puri)," said additional DCP (PRO), Rajan Bhagat.
Most often, both the accused and the victim were close friends or relatives. A 45-year-old man was stabbed to death by his childhood friend after a heated argument over Rs 100. The incident was reported from north Rohini. "We need to educate people. Mere policing is not enough to reverse the trend. We need the community to come forward and help us,'' said a senior police official.