The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has claimed that the Udaipur murder has links with a man in Pakistan, known as 'Salman Bhai,' who told one of the accused that they must ‘do something spectacular.’
According to an Indian Express report, the NIA investigation revealed that the murder was meticulously planned and ‘instigated’ by 'Salman bhai,' who said that peaceful protests would not yield results.
The probe revealed that Gaus Mohammad and Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari, the two accused in the case, had planned the attack between 10 June and 15 June.
Ghouse, one of the accused had reportedly gone to Pakistan at the invitation of Dawat-e-Islami, a Pakistan-based radical Islamic organisation.
Kanhaiya Lal Teli, a tailor in Rajasthan's Udaipur, was murdered by two men on Tuesday afternoon, 28 June over his social media posts allegedly supporting suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma's remarks against Prophet Muhammad.
He was earlier booked for sharing a controversial post on social media, after which he was arrested.
The MHA had earlier said that international links and involvement with terrorist organisations will be thoroughly investigated.
What Else Does the NIA Probe Reveal?
A few weeks before the attack, photos and details of a few individuals had been circulated on local WhatsApp groups and Kanhaiya Lal’s photos and details too, were among them.
They chose Kanhaiya Lal as their target since his shop was close to their place of work and were assisted by locals, says the Indian Express report. Two of them had undertaken a recce of the tailoring shop before the attack.
On the day of the incident, the two accused had reached the spot in different vehicles. After the murder, Ghouse and Atari went back to an office that belonged to a man identified as ‘Shoib bhai,’ where they recorded another video.
In this video, they issued a death threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This video had then been circulated on social media.
While the two main accused have been arrested, the police said that the role of four others, who were allegedly involved, is currently being investigated.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
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