‘Killed him like cowards’: Grief, rage shroud Udaipur
UDAIPUR: In the cramped Hiran Magri neighbourhood of Rajasthan’s Udaipur town, groups of men and women started gathering at the break of dawn on Wednesday. As the sun rose overhead, the crowd swelled outside a narrow two-storey house with peeling white-and-pink paint. Some young men were restive, many seething with anger. Others waited patiently for a final glimpse of Kanhaiya Lal, a 47-year-old tailor who was hacked to death by two Muslim men in a brutal daylight murder on Tuesday.
At 11.45am, his young sons Yash and Tarun brought out Lal’s body for the final journey, accompanied by their mother Yashoda, dressed in a bright red sari. The crowd roared – the savage killing had galvanised the city in grief and anger – and some young men raised communal slogans of revenge.
“We demand those people who murdered him should be hanged to death, we demand their death sentence and need justice,” said Yashoda, stifling sobs.
As the procession snaked its way through the narrow alleys of the city to the Ashok Nagar crematorium, groups of young men formed a human chain around the procession. The city was under prohibitory orders but men on motorcycles rode behind for almost eight kilometres. By the time they reached the crematorium, 2,000 people had gathered. As the pyre was lit, the elder son Yash, 20, said nothing less than the death sentence will satisfy the family. “I want both the men to be hanged”. His voice then soared as he trembled. “Nothing else, nothing less,” he said as the crowd chanted, “faansi, faansi (hang them, hang them)”.
By most accounts, Lal had largely cordial relations with the local Muslims in the Bhoot Mahal neighbourhood of Udaipur where his tailoring shop ran for over a decade. Many customers and local businessmen remembered him fondly and recalled their visits to the one-room shop with fading white walls and posters of Bollywood stars stuck with glue, racks of half-stitched clothes hanging overhand. “His tailoring skills and humility set him apart. He was my go-to tailor for years,” said one of his customers, Ahmed.
In the second week of June, he shared a Facebook post in favour of suspended Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson, Nupur Sharma, whose controversial comments on Prophet Mohammed caused an international storm. In a city where political opinions are sharply divided, the post garnered attention, and unknown to him, his photo began to be circulated, said a police officer, requesting anonymity. Lal came to know of this only two days later, according to his police complaint, when two men came to his shop, took his phone, deleted the post and warned him to not repeat it again. A copy of the complaint is with HT. Lal blamed his son for the post, and thought the matter ended there.
But on June 11, he was informed of a first information report (FIR) against him by Nazim Khan, whose tailoring shop is opposite Lal’s. He was arrested the same day and released on bail the next day, following a “compromise” recommended by the police, his family alleged. Lal complained to his family that several men allegedly began accosting him and carrying out a recce of his shop. “They would threaten him and ask to shut down his shop,” said Lal’s nephew, Ashwin.
Lal was also under pressure from his wife to stay safe. On June 15, he approached the police to complain against the threats and seek protection. His complaint was received, but not converted into an FIR. The shop, divided in two parts and measuring a total of 8x8 feet, remained closed for nearly a week, and Lal stayed home.
“We were all so scared. We survived on his income. It helped my brother and I pay for our studies and our ₹11,000 EMI for our home,” Yash said. With income drying up, Lal was desperate. He again approached the police, said his family. Days later, both parties agreed to withdraw complaints and on June 22, Lal opened his shop again.
The administration deputed two constables to guard his shop. “But they were taken off duty after two days,” said Yash. Udaipur’s superintendent of police, Manoj Kumar Chaudhary, refused to comment on the security status.
Lal’s family alleged that tension lingered and friendly businessmen would often alert him about motorcyclists loitering around. “Since a compromise was reached, we didn’t think there was any further worry,” Yash said.
Things came to a head on Tuesday. At 10am, Lal packed his lunch and headed for his shop, 8km away. His sons waved goodbye to him. “He was appearing relieved. We thought our bad days were finally over,” said Yash.
Around 2.45pm, two men walked into his shop with pieces of cloth, and Lal welcomed them. Police officers investigating the crime said that the suspects, Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari and Gaus Mohammed, had brought long knives hidden under their shirts. While Lal was taking the measurements of Akhtari, Gaus was secretly shooting with his mobile phone. Lal’s two staffers, Ishwar Goud and Rajkumar Sharma, were buried in work on tailoring machines.
It was in the middle of the measurement that Akhtari allegedly pulled out his knife and began attacking Lal. “Since Lal was not entirely under his control during the assault, Gaus kept his phone away and joined in,” said a senior police officer. Lal’s staffers rushed to his side, but staggered after being attacked. “Sharma escaped unhurt, but Goud received multiple cuts in his shoulder and head,” said the police officer quoted above.
Yash learnt of the murder at 3.22pm when his cousin called him. “When I arrived there, my father was already dead. I didn’t even think of ambulances and hospitals. No one could have survived such an attack,” he said.
As Lal’s body bled out on the street, people quickly gathered, conjecturing if this was the result of personal animosity. Within minutes though, the two attackers had uploaded a video of them gloating about the killing. By evening, the killing had sparked waves of outrage and condemnation across the country. By night, the two men were behind bars.
As news of the crime spread, swarms of people gathered around the Lal home; but inside, the family withdrew.