Internet blackout in Udaipur amid tension, ban on gatherings in state
With the video of the murder going viral across Udaipur, people poured out into the streets at Dhan Mandi, and demanded the immediate arrest of the two attackers. Stone pelting on a mosque was also reported in the area.
A sense of tension gripped Rajasthan’s Udaipur on Tuesday after the brutal killing of Kanhaiya Lal, a 47-year-old tailor in the city’s Dhan Mandi area, by two Muslim men who issued a video calling for more such acts.
With the video of the murder going viral across Udaipur, people poured out into the streets at Dhan Mandi, and demanded the immediate arrest of the two attackers. Stone pelting on a mosque was also reported in the area. At many places tyres were set on fire and vehicles were damaged by an angry mob.The Rajasthan Police scrambled to prevent a law and order flare up.
Shopkeepers in Dhan Mandi also downed their shutters in protest, and prevented the removal of Lal’s prone body, arguing that they would only allow its removal after the murderers are arrested, and a compensation of ₹50 lakh and a government job were given to the family.
Even till late at night, hours after the murder which took place at around 2:30 pm, the police were still locked in negotiations with angry locals.
The body of the victim was shifted to the mortuary at 10.15 pm after the administration assured jobs to his children, and a compensation of around ₹31 lakh. By evening, the Rajasthan government had banned internet services across the state for the following 24 hours, and imposed section 144 in all 33 districts. The leave of all police personnel and officers were cancelled, government officials said, as the state braced for a possible fallout.
At 7:30 pm, both accused in the crime, Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari and Gaus Mohammed, were arrested from the Bheem area in Rajmasand, 160 kilometres away from Udaipur city, director general of police ML Lather said.
According to the police, Riyaz works at a mosque and is also involved in religious propaganda, and Mohammed runs a grocery store. Both live in the Surajpole area of Udaipur.
The state police has also rushed two additional DG-rank officials to Udaipur, with 600 additional policemen to maintain law and order.
An alert was issued across the state and range IGs and SPs were asked to increase patrolling as a precautionary measure, ADG, law and order, Hawa Singh Ghumaria said.
“The guilty will not be spared. Entire police team is working on it with full alertness. I can imagine the anger which is there among people due to the murder. We are taking action accordingly,” chief minister Ashok Gehlot said.
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