Man murdered for drink money in Ludhiana; 2 factory workers held.

Ludhiana: Two factory workers desperate for a drink allegedly lured a helpless, intoxicated man into an empty lot and bludgeoned him to death with a concrete block for just ₹1,500.The crime highlights a grim, multiyear pattern of alcohol-fuelled killings in the industrial hub. Sandeep Srivastava and Ishaaq Ali, both labourers from Uttar Pradesh, were arrested after police traced their movements using nearby closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras.They reportedly had found a man sitting drunken outside a liquor shop near the Sherpur area. With no money to buy their own alcohol, the duo targeted the individual because his condition made him vulnerable.“The accused believed he would not resist,” said inspector Gurshinder Kaur, head of the Division Number 6 police station. “They supported him under the guise of helping him walk and led him to a nearby vacant lot.”Once inside the secluded area, Srivastava and Ali allegedly took ₹1,500 from the man’s pockets. When he attempted to fight back, the suspects thrashed him before smashing his head and face with a concrete block found on the scene.“The suspects used the stolen cash to purchase alcohol, drank it, and fled,” inspector Gurshinder Kaur said.Passersby discovered the body the following morning and alerted police, who reviewed security footage that captured the two suspects steering the unsteadily walking man towards the vacant lot. Both men remain in custody, charged with murder.