The Delhi Police have arrested a man for attacking freelance journalist Aparna Kalra in the Capital’s Ashok Vihar locality. Officers told CNN-News18 that he had tried to sexually assault her and then hit her aggressively with a stone when she resisted. The accused was believed to have been drinking alone at Picnic Hut park, where the assault took place, when Kalra – a Scroll.in contributor – was there on her evening walk.

Kalra, who was admitted to Fortis Hospital, had been in critical condition after the attack. The police had found the 45-year-old lying unconscious at the park on Wednesday, bleeding from her head and nose. Doctors had said she was brought in with severe injuries to her head, with parts of her skull missing. The police had registered an attempt to murder case against unknown people when they were unsure of the assailant’s identity and motive.

Picnic Hut park is usually abuzz with people out on walks. The police said at least four fatal attacks had been reported from such public places in north and northwest Delhi in the past two years.

The journalist lives with her family in Ashok Vihar Phase III. Kalra worked with mainstream newspapers before becoming a freelancer. You can read her articles for Scroll.in here.