Dharmendra's kin stabs mom

38-yr-old accused, a jobless drunk is the son of actor Dharmendra's cousin

A 38-year-old man was arrested after he stabbed his mother at their residence in Kalina. The accused, Vishal Dhanva, is an alcoholic and a drug addict, cops said. On Sunday night, when his mother Meena (54), refused to give him money to splurge on booze, he became delirious and stabbed her, they said. He was arrested by the Vakola police and remanded in their custody.

Vishal's father, Narendra Singh (65), is a cousin of actor Dharmendra. The apartment in which the family resides -- at Neel Shantiniketan, Kalina, CST Road -- belongs to Dharmendra's mother Satwant Kaur.

On Sunday, Vishal, who is currently unemployed, came home drunk and started demanding money from his mother, Meena. When she refused, Vishal caught hold of a chopper and stabbed her twice -- through the ribs and in the abdomen. She was rushed to Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra (E), where authorities informed the local police about the incident.

Later in the night, members of the Deol family visited Meena and shifted her to Lilavati Hospital in Bandra, where she is recuperating, sources said.

A resident of the building said, `It was routine for Vishal to kick up a ruckus in the building. He would come at odd hours and demand money, shouting from the compound below. Once he was being taken to rehab and he kept screaming, 'Mein wapas aaunga (I will come back).`

Another resident recalled, `A few days ago, his parents refused to give him money. Angry, he started pelting stones at his own house.` Referring to the stabbing, he added, `Such an incident was bound to happen.`

His parents, however, were not willing to report his misdeeds to the cops. A police officer said, `We tried to convince them to file a complaint but they played down the incident.`

Vakola police officers themselves became the complainant and registered a case. Senior Inspector Prabhakar Mule said, `He was produced before the Bandra court and remanded in police custody. He is charged with attempt to murder under the India Penal Code.