A 25-year-old woman, who was carrying her two-year-old daughter, was stabbed to death for resisting a chain-snatching bid in Northwest Delhi’s Adarsh Nagar, police said on Sunday, adding that they have arrested the accused involved in the Saturday (9:30 pm) incident.

A CCTV footage of the incident went viral on social media. In the video, two women can be seen walking when a man chases them and tries to snatch the victim’s chain from behind. The woman — identified as Simran Kaur — chases him, following which he falls on the road. Thereafter, he stands up and stabs the woman.

The accused stabbed the victim and fled the spot, police said, adding that she was taken to a hospital where she was declared brought dead.

Anil Jindal, Simran’s neighbour, said three years ago, an incident of snatching took place at the same spot where Simran was stabbed. The locals are in shock.

The incident took place hardly 20 metres from the victim’s house and there is a police post around 100 metres from the spot. Police teams have arrested two accused persons identified as Fardeen (19) and  Aqibul (22), both residents of Jahangir Puri. The weapon of offence and scooty used in crime were recovered. Simran’s aunt said she had gone to the market to buy medicines for her daughter.

“She was wearing a chain and holding her daughter. The accused was chasing them and tried to snatch the chain but Simran caught hold of it and did not lose her grip. When she resisted, the accused fell on the road.

We got to know that the accused was with his accomplice who took him on a scooter and fled from the spot,” her aunt said.

Amit Mehra, Simran's neighbour, said he took her to hospital in his car. “When the incident occurred, the guard followed the accused, but he escaped along with his accomplice who was waiting for him on a scooter. I took her to MD City hospital at Model Town in my car. They referred her to Fortis hospital where she was declared brought dead,” Mehra said.

Gurvinder Singh, a local resident, said crime in the area is increasing day by day.

"Crime in our area has become routine. Thieves are highly active here. They snatch gold chains, mobiles and other valuables. Incidents of battery theft are also increasing in the locality. I locked the battery of my car with a chain, despite that it was stolen by thieves," Gurvinder said.

"A case under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) has been registered at the Adarsh Nagar police station and an investigation is underway to nab the accused," said the senior police official.

"We have formed 10 teams and are very close to working out this incident. Police are patrolling the area and pickets have been placed to stop these kinds of incidents," Usha Rangnani, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Northwest district.