New Delhi: The NIA is looking into the role of “local self-radicalised” groups and other linkages of the two prime accused in the brutal killing of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli, officials said on Thursday.
The federal agency is waiting to get the custody of Riaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad so that it can begin their questioning as part of the case registered against them under various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and Indian Penal Code.
The NIA said the two wanted to “strike terror among the masses across the country” through the gruesome act. The duo had posted videos online claiming responsibility for the attack and also issued a threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Officials said the agency is looking into the role of “local self-radicalised gangs” and their possible international linkages even as preliminary probe suggests that more people could be involved in the conspiracy to murder Teli.
Akhtari and Mohammad are being taken to Jaipur where they would be produced before a special NIA court, officials said.
The NIA officials said the two became members of Pakistan-based Sunni Islamic organisation Dawat-e-Islami via a mobile application and one of them was in touch with some people in Pakistan. They, however, said it was too early to draw conclusions yet.
A team of around 10 NIA personnel, led by an inspector general-rank officer, is camping in Udaipur to take the probe forward.
The Karachi-based Dawat-e-Islami website says it is a “global non-political Islamic organisation working for the propagation of the Quran and Sunnah throughout the globe” and that it was established in 1981.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot visited the tailor’s family and told reporters that he wanted the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file the charge sheet in a fast-track court as soon as possible, so that the culprits are brought to justice.
