Rajasthan / Pakistan Dawat-e-Islami link emerges in Udaipur beheading incident says investigations

Rajasthan | The investigation into the brutal murder of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal has pointed to an international link between his killers, especially with the Karachi-based Dawat-e-Islami. As per the investigation, various accused had made frequent foreign trips. Ghaus Mohammad, who beheaded Kanhaiya Lal along with Riyaz Akhtari, was summoned to Pakistan in 2014 by senior functionaries of Dawat-e-Islami.

Karachi-based Dawat-e-Islami aims to spread the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah with the aim of advocating Sharia globally. It has a large following in Pakistan and is committed to supporting blasphemy laws in the Islamic country.

According to the investigating officers, Ghaus Mohammad stayed in Karachi for 40 days. He went to Saudi Arabia for Umrah in 2013 and 2019. Other accused have also traveled abroad including Saudi Arabia.

While Ghaus Mohammad was trained by Dawat-e-Islami functionaries in Karachi, the second killer, Riyaz Akhtari, was allegedly trying to join the minority cell of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Rajasthan. The investigation also revealed that Riyaz Akhtari, a follower of Dawat-e-Islami leader Ilyas Attar Qadri, was trying to get closer with BJP leaders and workers of Muslim Rashtriya Manch. He had tried to get close to BJP Minority Morcha member Irshad Chainwala and BJP worker Tahir Raza Khan to target them.

Akhtari had allegedly conducted recce of BJP offices and party office-bearers for his purpose. The BJP has denied Congress's allegations of Akhtari being associated with the saffron party and any connection with Akhtari.

During interrogation, accused Riyaz Akhtari did not utter a word about joining BJP or trying to target leaders of the saffron party. Both the accused are in the custody of NIA. According to internal security experts in Delhi and Rajasthan, neither Akhtari nor Ghaus Mohammad have uncovered any major conspiracy on their part to target BJP leaders.

The Jaipur-based National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Saturday sent the four accused, Mohammad Riaz Akhtari, Ghaus Mohammad and their accomplices Asif and Mohsin, arrested in the Udaipur murder case, to 10-day NIA remand.