A hawker who attempted to intervene in a scuffle between a man and some women passengers on a Mumbai suburban train was stabbed and is currently in hospital, according to a police official.

The incident, which took place on Wednesday afternoon near Bandra station on the Western Railway network, escalated when Sachin Dharolia, a 24-year-old hawker, attempted to stop a verbal altercation between the man and several women. Dharolia, who was selling chocolates in the women’s compartment of the train with his brother-in-law, Jitesh Ambalia, found himself in the middle of the dispute when the situation took a violent turn.