New Delhi: The accused in the Gurugram mosque attack and naib imam murder case “pre-planned” the assault and wanted to take “revenge” for the 31 July communal clashes in Nuh, ThePrint has learnt.
High-level sources in Haryana Police confirmed that the accused got together and formulated a plan of attack, collected weapons, and specifically “targeted” the Anjuman Jama Masjid in Gurugram’s Sector 57.
Last week, a day after the communal violence in Nuh, the Anjuman Jama Masjid was torched and Naib Imam Mohammed Saad, 22, was killed, allegedly amid slogans of ‘Jai Shree Ram’. Khurshid Alam, the caretaker of the mosque, was also shot at during the attack.
Seven arrests have been made so far by the Gurugram Police in the case. “Affiliations with outfits and where the weapons (guns and others) were procured from are currently under investigation. It was a mob of 90-100 people. More raids and arrests will be taking place,” a source in Haryana Police told ThePrint.
While Ankit, Rahul, Ravinder and Rakesh were the first to have been arrested in the case, more accused, identified as Naveen, Sattu and Naveen alias Tinkle were nabbed days later. The FIR lodged in the matter mentions Ankit, Naveen alias Tinkle and Rahul as part of the crowd.
Also Read: Nuh violence got India’s attention, but Mewat wasn’t always communal
Who are the accused?
Speaking to ThePrint, sources in Haryana Police gave details of the accused in the case:
Naveen alias Tinkle, 26, a resident of Nathupur village in Gurugram, works as a debris contractor. He earns around Rs 2 lakh per year and dropped out of school after class 11. He has three previous cases lodged against him under the Arms Act and IPC sections 323 (causing hurt voluntarily), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 307 (attempt to murder).
Rakesh, 23, a resident of Tigra village in Gurugram, is unemployed. He dropped out of school after class 8 and has two previous cases against him under IPC sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 325 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation).
Naveen, 27, a resident of Nathupur village in Gurugram, works as a scrape contractor. He is a B.Com graduate and has three previous cases under the Arms Act and IPC sections 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 325 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation).
Satpal alias Satte, 30, a resident of Bandhwari village in Gurugram, works in agriculture, sale and purchase of goods. He earns around Rs 3 lakh per year and dropped out of school after class 9. He has no criminal record.
Ravinder, 32, a resident of Tigra village in Gurugram, works as a water tanker driver. He earns around Rs 2 lakh per year and dropped out of school after class 10. He, too, has no previous criminal cases.
Ankit and Rahul, both of whom are 25 years old, are residents of Tigra village in Gurugram. While Ankit is currently unemployed, Rahul works as a gym trainer and has passed class 12. Both the men have no previous criminal cases against them.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)