Days Before His Brutal Beheading, Kanhaiya Lal Sought Police Protection Citing Death Threats From Muslims, Flagged Role Of His Neighbour Nazim

Days before he was brutally beheaded, Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal had sought police protection, citing death threats from Muslim community members, and had flagged his neighbour Nazim's role in targeting him.

On June 11, Kanhaiya Lal was arrested by the local police over allegations that he had posted on social media expressing support for former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. He was arrested after a complaint was lodged against him by his neighbour Nazim. He was later released on bail after he told cops that he did not know how to operate a mobile phone and the post was likely to have been shared by his child by mistake while playing a video game.

On June 15, he had written a complaint to the police that he was receiving threat calls.

Kanhaiya said in his complaint that Nazim, along with five others, had been doing recce of his shop for the past 2-3 days and were not allowing him to open it.

In his complaint, Kanhaiya also said that Nazim and his friends circulated his picture and name on various Muslim WhatsApp groups with a threat that he would be killed wherever he was seen on the street or if he opened his shop.

Kanhaiya Lal was brutally murdered at his shop on Tuesday (Jun28).

The assailants, who later identified themselves in another video as Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, entered Kanhaiya Lal's shop in Dhan Mandi posing as customers. As the tailor took the measurements, Akhtari attacked him with a cleaver, nearly severing his neck. The other man shot the brutal murder with his mobile phone.

The men fled from the scene and later uploaded the beheading clip on social media. In another video, the assailants boasted about the "beheading" — and issued death threats to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma.

In another video shot on June 17, eleven days after he beheaded 47-year-old Kanhaiya Lal, Akhtari declared that he would be committing the act. He urged others to follow his lead once he committed the first murder.

According to police sources, Akhtari works at a local mosque, and the other assailant runs a grocery shop. He asked urged other members of the community to continue with similar attacks.

(with inputs from PTI)