Udaipur Case: NIA Takes Main Accused Into Custody, To Be Produced Before NIA Court

The accused, Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, were brought from Ajmer's high-security jail to Jaipur and will be produced before the NIA court.

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday took custody of the accused in the Udaipur murder case. The two were brought from Ajmer's high-security jail to Jaipur and will be produced before the NIA court. The accused, Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, were brought to Ajmer high-security jail amid tight security on Friday, news agency ANI reported. Tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Rajasthan's Udaipur was hacked to death inside his shop by two men in broad daylight. 

The two men beheaded him for allegedly posting content in support of suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nupur Sharma and the incident sparked public outrage across the country. 

In a video, the culprits identified themselves as Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad. Riyaz was seen attacking 47-year-old Kanhaiya Lal with a sharp-edged weapon while the other, Ghouse, recorded the crime on his mobile phone. Soon after committing the crime, the two accused posted a video on social media boasting about the "beheading" and threatened Prime Minister Narendra Modi's life as well, ANI reported the police as stating. 

The victim had reportedly shared a social media post in support of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma who had made controversial remarks against Prophet Mohammad during a television debate. 

After their videos surfaced online, Riyaz and Ghouse were arrested from Bhim in the Rajsamand district. 

Meanwhile, deceased Kanhaiya Lal was cremated on Wednesday in Udaipur in the presence of a large number of people who raised slogans demanding capital punishment for the accused. His last rites were performed amidst heavy police security. 

According to the Rajasthan Police, the main accused persons involved in the killing of the tailor in Udaipur were in touch with Pakistan-based organisation Dawat-e-Islami and one of them also went to Karachi in Pakistan in 2014 to meet the organisation, ANI reported. 

Rajasthan Director General of Police (DGP) ML Lather informed the police have taken three other people into our custody with whom the accused were in contact. 

NIA on Thursday stated that it suspects the role of a "terror gang and not a terror outfit". As per the central agency, there is a role of a bigger gang behind the brutal killing and that it was not just an act done by only two persons, ANI reported. The accused, both residents of Udaipur, will be questioned at NIA's Jaipur office and will not be brought to Delhi.