A 44-year-old Telford man went on trial at The Old Bailey in London today accused of murdering a workmate at a factory.

Balraj Singh allegedly stabbed 43-year-old father-of-two Gurmukh Singh Chahal when a grudge festered at the machine parts factory where they were both working in London, the court heard.

Singh, of Weavers Rise, Ketley Bank, denies murdering Mr Chahal in the alleged incident at Mac Engineering on the Bridge Road Industrial Estate, Southall, on April 9 this year.

Miss Zoe Johnson, prosecuting, told the jury that Singh and Mr Chahal had argued towards the end of March or early in April.

She said Singh parked his car in the factory unit and the men had rowed when Singh told Mr Chahal not to move some large bins in the factory unit to the roller shutter doors in case they damaged Singh’s vehicle.

Miss Johnson told the ju-ry: “It seems that the defendant may have had a grudge against the deceased, Mr Chahal, which festered in the confines of the factory.”

She said the alleged stabbing took place after Singh returned to his accommodation in the factory.

She said: “The defendant, who was off duty but who was living on the factory site at the time and was watching the factory floor from a first floor kitchen window, became incensed by something he observed on the factory floor.

“He came storming downstairs to the factory floor, he was holding a kitchen knife and he went straight up to Gurmukh Singh Chahal, and without warning, he stabbed him in the chest.”

The jury heard that the stab wound punctured Mr Chahal’s left lung and ruptured his pulmonary vein.

Miss Johnson claimed that before going back upstairs, Singh was seen to pick something up off the ground which the prosecution suggested was the knife involved. She said after the incident Mr Chahal was helped to a seat but he soon collapsed as internal bleeding became progressively worse and died at the scene.

The jury heard that the whole incident was captured on CCTV footage.

The trial continues.