On Thursday, June 15, an agitated mob comprising locals burned down the house of the accused in the gruesome Manohar Lal murder case in the Salooni area in the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Earlier the protestors led a demonstration outside the Kihar Police Station. The protestors raised some slogans and demanded stern action against the killers of the 21-year-old Manohar Lal.
Following the incident, section 144 has been imposed in the Kihar police station area. The Hindu victim Manohar Lal was in a relationship with a Muslim girl named Rukhsana. The girl’s family was opposed to their relationship, however, the police have insisted that there is no ‘communal angle’ to the murder.
Meanwhile, DIG Kangra Range Abhishek Dullar stated that a crowd of over 1,000 people congregated in Bhandal village and burned down the accused’s residence. The police evacuated all family members and anyone related to the accused in the murder case. According to him, the police have arrested around ten people who were involved in the burning of the accused’s residence.
गुस्साई भीड़ ने आग के हवाले किया हत्या आरोपियों का घर
— Ankush Dobhal🇮🇳 (@DobhalAnkush) June 15, 2023
• चंबा के किहार में 21 वर्षीय मनोहर की हुई है नृशंस हत्या
• आठ अलग-अलग टुकड़ों में काटा गया था मनोहर का शव#chamba #himachal #chambamurder pic.twitter.com/O3cZ7lO0V4
SP Chamba, Abhishek Yadav said that the police have arrested three persons Shabbir, Musafir and Farida on murder charges and have detained two minors as well.
The BJP leader and former CM of Himachal Pradesh, Jairam Thakur on Thursday raised the demand to hand over the probe in the case to National Investigation Agency (NIA).
According to Jairam Thakur, the accused first called Manohar to their home. He was then beaten with rods, and Manohar, who was unconscious at the time, was sliced into eight pieces. According to Jairam Thakur, the accused’s ties are also linked to terrorists. During demonetisation, the accused swapped notes worth Rs 95 lakh, and he also has two crore rupees in his account, despite the fact that the accused’s means of income are modest. The accused owns three bighas of land and have captured 100 bighas of land.
Moreover, Thakur alleged that the accused were also linked to the Satrundi terror attack in Chamba in 1998. This incident claimed the lives of 35 people.
Manohar Lal was brutally murdered for being in a relationship with a Muslim girl named Rukhsana. Following the murder, his body was chopped into eight pieces and thrown in a water stream in Bhandal village, Salooni subdivision, Chamba district, last week.
On June 6, the Hindu youth went missing while returning home from his cowshed on the hilltop. He allegedly proceeded to meet his lover, a Muslim girl. The girl’s family allegedly beat him with sticks and then sliced up his body and put it into a drain when he died. While patrolling in the region on June 9, four soldiers from the Indian Reserve Battalion discovered the body. Some media reports suggest that the chopped body was found in a sack after locals noticed it and informed the police.
Hindu organisations learned about the incident and demanded strict action against the accused. A case under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and other relevant sections has been filed against the accused.
