On June 15, he approached the police to complain against the threats and seek protection. Lal was also under pressure from his wife to stay safe. “They would threaten him and ask to shut down his shop,” said Lal’s nephew, Ashwin. Lal complained to his family that several men allegedly began accosting him and carrying out a recce of his shop. He was arrested the same day and released on bail the next day, following a “compromise” recommended by the police, his family alleged. Lal blamed his son for the post, and thought the matter ended there.īut on June 11, he was informed of a first information report (FIR) against him by Nazim Khan, whose tailoring shop is opposite Lal’s. 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. 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. 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. He was my go-to tailor for years,” said one of his customers, Ahmed. “His tailoring skills and humility set him apart. 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. “Nothing else, nothing less,” he said as the crowd chanted, “faansi, faansi (hang them, hang them)”.īy 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. As the pyre was lit, the elder son Yash, 20, said nothing less than the death sentence will satisfy the family. By the time they reached the crematorium, 2,000 people had gathered. The city was under prohibitory orders but men on motorcycles rode behind for almost eight kilometres. “We demand those people who murdered him should be hanged to death, we demand their death sentence and need justice,” said Yashoda, stifling sobs.Īs 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 crowd roared – the savage killing had galvanised the city in grief and anger – and some young men raised communal slogans of revenge.Īlso Read | Kanhaiya Lal’s killers have links to Karachi-based Sunni group: Rajasthan DGP 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.
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