The Union home ministry on Wednesday directed the National Investigation Agency to take over the murder case of Kanhaiya Lal, a tailor who was beheaded in Udaipur on Tuesday. The brutal killing was filmed by two Muslim men, Mohammed Riyaz Attari and Ghouse Mohammed, his assailants.
“The involvement of any organisation and international links will be thoroughly investigated,” the office of Home Minister Amit Shah said.
A purported video of the killing surfaced on social media on Tuesday evening. Another video of two men purportedly claiming responsibility for the killing was also shared online. In the video, the men brandished swords and threatened to kill Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Kanhaiya Lal had shared a social media post supporting Nupur Sharma’s disparaging comments about the prophet Muhammed. He was arrested by Rajasthan Police and was on bail.
Both the men have been arrested under draconian UAPA.
After Lal’s killing, shops in the city’s Maldas Street area were closed down. Locals also staged a protest against the incident.
Furthermore, the Rajasthan government constituted a Special Investigation Unit (SIT) to probe the case.
Additional Director of Police (ADG), Special Operation Group, Ashok Kumar Rathore, Inspector General of Police (IG), Anti Terror Squad (ATS), Prafulla Kumar and a Superintendent of Police (SP) rank officer and an additional SP rank officer are included in the SIT to investigate the matter.
Muslim figures and organisations condemn the heinous crime
Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind issued a press release calling the Udaipur incident “very unfortunate and reprehensive.”
General Secretary of the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind – Maulana Hakeemuddin Qasmi, has condemned the brutal killing in Udaipur and called the incident against the law of the land and against the religion of Islam.
The press release also stated, “(Maulana Hakeemuddin Qasmi) has said whoever has perpetrated this incident cannot be justified in any way, it is against the law of the land and our religion. In our country, there is a system of law, no one has the right to take the law into his own hands. “
Maulana Hakeemuddin Qasmi further appealed to all the citizens to restrain their emotions and maintain peace in the country.
“The Udaipur incident is barbaric, Uncivilized and there is no room for Justification of violence in Islam. We strongly condemn it. No citizen should take law in his own hands. Let the law prevail,” tweeted Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
The Muslim body added: “The culprits should be dealt with according to the law of the land. In any case, Peace should not be disturbed. Nobody should try to take the advantage of this ugly crime.”
AIMIM’s president and MP – Asaduddin Owaisi, condemned the attack and called it a “gruesome murder.”
He tweeted, “I condemn the gruesome murder in Udaipur Rajasthan. There can be no justification for it. Our party’s consistent stand is to oppose such violence. No one can take law in their own hands. We demand that the state govt takes strictest possible action. Rule of law must be upheld.”
“The brutal murder in Udaipur is condemnable. No one can defend such a murder. The Muslim stand of our party is that no one has the right to take the law into their own hands. We have always opposed violence.”
Asaduddin Owaisi further said, “We demand government to take strict action against the culprits. The rule of law has to be maintained.
In a separate statement, the MP said, “I strongly condemn the Udaipur incident… We hope the Rajasthan govt takes strict action. Had the police been more alert, this wouldn’t have happened… Radicalisation is spreading… Nupur Sharma should be arrested; mere suspension was not enough.”
BJP’s attack on the Rajasthan government
Amid the gruesome murder of a tailor in Udaipur, BJP slammed the Rajasthan government.
Vasundra Raje – former CM of Rajasthan and BJP leader blamed the appeasement and incitement policies of the Congress-led government for the communal violence in the state.
She said, “With the brutal murder of an innocent youth in Udaipur, it has become clear that due to the instigation and appeasement of the state government, the spirits of the criminals are high. Due to this policy of the state government, a situation of communal frenzy and violence has arisen in the state.”
Vasundra Raje further said, “Those people and organisations behind this incident should be exposed and arrested immediately.”
