NEW DELHI: The 65-year-old widow of a former Income Tax Commissioner was found stabbed to death in her house at Anand Vihar in East Delhi on Tuesday. The assailant, who had entered the house and robbed the old woman of cash and jewellery, however, could not escape and was arrested at the spot.

According to the police, the neighbours of Saroj Jain, wife of late Rajinder Mohan who lived at Pushpanjali Enclave in Anand Vihar, informed the police about the incident around 10-30 a.m. They had also managed to catch hold of a person, later identified as Ram Pujan, who was found hiding in the "pooja room" inside the house. The police recovered a knife from his possession.

Earlier, Ms. Jain's daughter, who lives in Bangalore, had called up her mother's neighbour when Ms. Jain did not respond to her calls this morning. The neighbour informed another acquaintance of Ms. Jain who lived in the same locality and had a duplicate key to the house. The neighbours then opened the flat only to find Ms. Jain lying in a pool of blood. The house had been ransacked. Even as they informed the police, the neighbours saw Ram Pujan in the "pooja room" and caught him.

During interrogation, the accused allegedly told the police that he had managed to enter the house of Ms. Jain from the first floor staircase around 4 a.m. He first tried to strangle her and then stabbed her to death. He then took his own time to lay his hands on whatever cash and jewellery he could find.

The police said the exact reason why Ram Pujan did not escape from the house were yet to be ascertained. According to one version, he got locked in the "pooja room" and was somehow not able to come out. Ram Pujan even told the police that he simply fell asleep after committing the crime. But the police said it was not plausible. One possible reason, the police believe, could be that by the time Ram Pujan decided to leave it was already day-break and he feared getting caught. The police are interrogating him further.

Ram Pujan also told the police that he had been working as a mason in nearby localities for the past six months. He was aware that Ms. Jain lived alone and was a soft target. After the death of her husband, Ms. Jain was living alone in her flat while her daughter was in Bangalore.

Anand Vihar police have registered a case of murder-cum-robbery and further investigations are on.

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