Three Rajasthan Youths Arrested Over Abhishek's Murder In Nuh Violence, Family Claims Accused Minor

Three young individuals have been apprehended by investigators from Bharatpur district's Pahari village regarding the communal violence in Haryana's Nuh district.

While the arrests took place in Nuh, the families of the youths, all of whom are truck drivers, assert that they were present for work purposes. In one instance, a family has claimed that the police arrested a 16-year-old from their household.

In response to this, a police spokesperson stated that documents verifying the accused individuals' ages need to be submitted to the police. Subsequently, the police will confirm the information and forward it to the court. The spokesperson emphasized that action would be taken accordingly if the accused is determined to be a juvenile.

The trio has been arrested in connection with the murder of Abhishek, a resident of Panipat. The complaint was lodged by Abhishek's relative, Mahesh, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Arms Act.

The FIR recounts, "The procession was scheduled to depart from the temple premises around 1-1.30 pm, but authorities prevented devotees from leaving. Later, around 800-900 people started pelting stones at the temple and attempting to attack the devotees. Among them were 8-10 young men… Four young men were seen firing directly at the temple using illegal weapons, endangering the lives of devotees. In the chaos, my brother was shot in the chest and fatally wounded. One of the attackers wielded a sword and slit his throat."

Regarding the arrest of his nephew, Ismail, a resident of Pahari, recounted, "We received a call from the SHO of Nuh City police station who said, 'The boy is here, don't look for him elsewhere.' Now he is in judicial custody. The youth was arrested by the police at a petrol pump in Nuh, 33 km from his home and school, where he attends 10th grade."

Citing a purported Class 10 marksheet and Aadhaar card, the family insists that the boy is 16 years old. Ismail explained that the youth was traveling to Tauru with his cousin Sabir (24), who has also been arrested, on 31 July.

Sabir works as a truck driver and frequently travels between his home and various cities, including Gurgaon, Delhi, and even South Indian states like Karnataka. According to Ismail, the 16-year-old accompanied Sabir to Tauru on his trip, enticed by the promise of pocket money.

Ismail stated, "They left home around 12 pm on 31 July. When they reached Mandikhera, the violence had started and vehicles could not pass. Since they couldn't reach Tauru, they returned and reached home by 4 pm."

The next day, the two set out again to Tauru on a motorcycle. "They were in Nuh, along with another villager named Salim (also arrested in the case), at a petrol pump when the police arrested them," Ismail explained. The youth's mother, Sameena, added that her son had taken leave from school to accompany Sabir.

Advocate Mujeeb Khan, based in Nuh, was among the lawyers who assisted civil judge Anjali Jain when her car was attacked by a mob in Nuh on 31 July. He stated, "I have been closely coordinating with the families of these boys from Bharatpur. The 16-year-old has been sent to Nuh jail and he was arrested under sections related to murder."

Salim's brother, Mohammad Rafeeq, revealed that they contacted Rajasthan Police on 2 August after receiving news that Salim was missing. He recounted, "The next day, I received a call from City Nuh police station that Salim had been arrested and that we shouldn't search for him. Before I could inquire further, they hung up."

It's worth noting that Bharatpur is the same district where Junaid and Nasir lived. They were allegedly killed by cow vigilantes in Bhiwani on suspicion of cattle smuggling.

Despite rumors connecting the youths to Junaid and Nasir due to their shared district, Ismail stressed that his nephew and Sabir had no association with them.

He stated, "People are quick to assume that our boys are linked to the previous incident just because they are from the same district, but we were unaware of Junaid and Nasir until their deaths. Our boys were also unaware of the procession taking place."