14-year-old Rajat Menon was reportedly hacked to death by two other teenagers over a prank.
14-year-old Rajat Menon was reportedly hacked to death by two other teenagers over a prank.Reuters

Rajat Krishnan Menon, a 14-year-old boy from Kerala, died under mysterious circumstances in East Delhi on Wednesday, June 30. It has been reported that the boy had altercations with two teenagers near his house in Mayur Vihar, and that the police have registered a murder case against both the minors.

Rajat, a student of Class IX at Salwan Public school, is the son of Unnikrishnan, a Palakkaad native. Rajat is said to have been with two of his friends, when he ran into the minors that are accused of murdering him.

The two are sons of a local pan shop owner. They had apparently accused Rajat of shoplifting from their father's kiosk. They had asked him to return the stolen items but Rajat was firm on his statement that he had not shoplifted anything.

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Angry with Rajat over the alleged shoplifting, the brothers waylaid him and his friends, who were returning home after playing snooker, near Mayur Vihar Phase – III market. The vocal arguments over the missing items quickly turned physical. Rajat reportedly collapsed during the fight.

"My son saw them thrashing Rajat as they walked and when they reached near a park in the area, Rajat collapsed. Both his friends, including my son, panicked and tried to pour water on him. When that did not work, they returned to the homes to inform us what had happened. That was the last time they saw Rajat with the other boys," the father of one of Rajat's friends told the Hindu.

It is understood that after Rajat's friends left the scene, the accused took Rajat to a private clinic, where he was declared dead. They then took him to Metro Hospital and the Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital, where the doctors confirmed Rajat's death.

A few publications have reported that the father of the accused has also been charged and detained by the police along with the minors; however, there are conflicting reports regarding the matter. There has been a backlash over the crime and it is understood that an angry mob burned down the pan shop owned by the duo's father.