The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday conducted searches at multiple locations in Maharashtra in connection with the brutal killing of pharmacist Umesh Kolhe in Amravati on June 21, over a social media post supporting suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nupur Sharma.
During the searches on 13 premises linked to the accused persons and suspects in the case, the agency seized digital devices, including mobile phones, SIM cards, memory cards and digital video recorders, pamphlets bearing hate messages, knives, and other incriminating documents.
The NIA re-registered the case on July 2 on the Union Home Ministry's direction and took custody of all the seven accused — Shaikh Irfan Shaikh Rahim, Yusuf Khan, Muddasar Ahmad, Abdul Taufiq, Shoaib Khan, Shahrukh Pathan and Atib Rashid — arrested by the local police.
The police found that Kolhe had forwarded his post to a WhatsApp group. One of its members forwarded it to the accused, Shaikh Irfan, who allegedly masterminded the killing that was executed on the night of June 21, when the pharmacist was returning home on his scooter. Two men intercepted the scooter and stabbed him on the neck, following which they fled on a motorcycle driven by an accomplice. The victim was rushed to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
