Five people were arrested in separate cases in Rajasthan's Hanumangarh district on Monday, 4 July, for allegedly circulating the video of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal's murder. They also reportedly posted photos and videos with arms on social media, police said.
Additional Director General of Police, Law and Order, Hawa Singh Ghumria had "urged" people not to watch the video of the 28 June killing and directed the media not to circulate it due to its inflammatory content.
Sirajuddin Hussain (36) was arrested in Hanumangarh town for circulating the video of the Udaipur murder, Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh said.
Besides him, Tarsem Puri was arrested by Sangaria Police, Rajkumar Jat and Mohammad Shakur by Sadar Police and Pavan Kumar by Nohar police for uploading photos and videos on social media with arms.
This displayed an "intention to create terror among people," the Superintendent of Police (SP) said.
Kanhaiya Lal Teli was killed by two men over a social media post in which the former had allegedly supported former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma's remarks against Prophet Muhammad.
The Case So Far
The two persons accused of the murder – Gaus Mohammad and Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari - have been sent to 14-day judicial custody.
On 17 June, one of the men who claimed responsibility for the murder uploaded a video indicating that he would be committing the crime. In that video, the alleged killer had said that his video would go viral the day he commits the murder.
On 28 June, the video of the brutal act also surfaced on social media. After the incident occurred, the accused persons made another video in which they threatened Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The accused were arrested by the police on the same day and were charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Two more persons, identified as Mohsin and Asif, were arrested on the charge of conspiracy in connection with the murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Rajasthan's Udaipur, the police said on Friday, 1 July.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is currently probing case, said that the accused did not have links to any terrorist outfit, as speculated by some media reports.
The case is being investigated by a six to ten-member NIA team, under the supervision of officers in the ranks of inspector general and deputy inspector general.
(With inputs from PTI)
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