BJP leaders have launched a protest against the arrest of six people who were allegedly involved in the murder of a Muslim man, mistaken for a thief, in Aligarh’s Mama Bhanja locality.
The deceased Mohammed Farid, alias Aurangzeb, was attacked after he was reportedly seen coming out of a local resident’s house. The owner’s son saw Farid running towards the main gate.
Mistaking him to be a thief, the family members and people in the area thrashed him to death with lathis and by kicking and punching his face.
Local BJP MLA Mukta Raja defended the accused and stated that they should be freed.
The accused were identified as Ankit Varshney, Chirag Varshney, Jai Gopal, alias Pandit Vijaygarhwala, Kamal Bansal, Dimpy Agarwal, and Rahul Agarwal. All have been charged under sections 302 (murder) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the IPC.
Meanwhile, Hindustan Times reported that the complaint alleged the accused wanted to kill Farid because he was a Muslim.
“They (accused) gathered with the intention of killing brother Aurangzeb. They had lathi, stick, hockey stick, and iron rod in hand and attacked my brother after identifying him as a Muslim; they killed him,” the complaint read.
The kin of Farid has demanded compensation and has sought strict punishment for the accused.
