Police in Uttar Pradesh has filed a charge-sheet against 15 people in the Dadri lynching case, which had killed 52-year-old Mohammad Akhlaq on 28 September.
Among the 15 people charge-sheeted is local BJP leader Sanjay Rana’s son, Vishal.
The 250-page charge-sheet also names Vishal’s two cousins and one minor as main accused. Police said his age certificate is being verified and he will be produced before the juvenile court accordingly. However, there’s no mention of beef.
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Akhlaq was killed over rumours that he had eaten and stored beef in his house but forensic report later had suggested that the stored meat in Akhlaq’s fridge was of goat.
Akhlaq’s daughter, Shaishta, has been made the prime witness in the case.
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“Forensic report is yet to be received on whether the meat sample taken from the fridge of the deceased’s house was that of goat or cow. In the chargesheet it is stated that the accused persons had attacked the house of Ikhlaq after the announcement from the temple about cow slaughtering. The accused had found pieces of meat stored in fridge and they had claimed it to be that of beef,” Singh said.
Akhlaq’s murder had kicked off a huge national and international outrage with dozens of intellectuals, historians, film-makers and scientists returning their national honours in protest against the growing religious intolerance under Narendra Modi government.