Panchkula, Nov. 21 -- In early October, Brijesh Rawat, a waiter, was returning home after a late-night shift when three men on a motorcycle waylaid him near Sector 5, Panchkula, and demanded that he hand over whatever valuables he was carrying. Unwilling to part with his day's hard-earned money, Rawat resisted. But what followed was a complete nightmare. The men roughed him up and viciously stabbed him in the chest, stomach and thigh before fleeing with his phone and purse. A bleeding Rawat was discovered by a passer-by and rushed to the hospital.

This is not an isolated incident. Between September 1 and November 15, Panchkula has seen nearly 20 stabbing and robbery incidents, where victims were stabbed and left to bleed. From women out ...