Ruling out any connection between an attempt on the life of a Muslim councilor and the murders of a Bajrang Dal leader and his employee within couple of hours in Ratlam town on Saturday, the police have arrested five Muslim youths in connection with the twin murders.
The five, two of them with criminal history, were remanded in police custody for five days on Wednesday. The police have launched a hunt for two persons, Hyder, who is believed to be related to councilor Yasmin Sherani, and his accomplice Rizwan, saying they were the brain behind the right-wing activist’s murder.
State Congress leader Sherani is being treated at a private hospital in Indore after she was shot at by masked men near the Ratlam Municipal Corporation building in broad daylight. The shooting was followed by incidents of arson and damage to government property by her supporters.
Within couple of hours Bajrang Dal leader Kapil Rathod, who owns a restaurant at the Ratlam bus stand, and his employee Pukhraj Paliwal were attacked by a group of masked men wielding country-made guns and at least one knife. While Kapil and Pukhraj were declared dead late in the night, Kapil’s brother Vikram, who also suffered injuries, is being treated at a hospital in Indore.
Ratlam SP Ashish Kumar told The Indian Express that Hyder wanted to settle an old score with Rathod but made it look like retaliation for the attack on the Muslim councilor. He said the two incidents were not related but an attempt was made to whip up communal feelings. The police said they are yet to find out who was involved in the attack on the councilor.
Curfew was clamped in the town by Saturday evening and after enforcing it strictly for the first two days, the district administration has started relaxing it gradually. The administration had issued passes when Rathod’s funeral took place on Sunday. A local BJP legislator had a tough time at the crematorium when he was reportedly heckled by Bajrang Dal activists.
The police are yet to arrest Hyder and Rizwan. Three of the five men-Musaif, 24, Nasir, 26, Yahya, 29, Jahir, 26, and Asif alias Musa, 26, arrested on Monday were involved in the killing.
The SP said Hyder’s arrest would prove crucial to the case. The accused were identified from CCTV footage and the police have recovered a two-wheeler, a firearm and a knife so far.
A year ago a complaint had been lodged against Hyder at the instance of Kapil, 25, after an altercation. The full details about the altercation are yet to emerge but Hyder held a grudge against Kapil, who was active in campaign against cow slaughter.
