Rinku Sharma, 25, was murdered on Wednesday night.
Highlights
- BJP worker stabbed to death in Delhi after argument
- Argument over shutdown of a restaurant, the police said
- Family alleged fight over rally to raise money for Ram temple
A 25-year-old BJP worker was stabbed to death in Delhi on Wednesday night after an argument at a birthday party. The family of Rohit Sharma, also known as Rinku Sharma, has alleged a communal motive to his murder, but the police deny it, saying that it is inquiring into all angles.
Five accused, Nashruddin, Islam, Mehtab, Jahid and Tajuddin, were arrested on Thursday and charged with murder, the police said.
Rinku Sharma had gone to his friend Babu's birthday party near his home in Mangolpuri in outer Delhi on that day. The five accused were also at the party. They were all neighbours and had all known each other for long, the police said. An argument and a fight broke out at the party, after which Rinku Sharma reportedly went home. The five men followed him and attacked him with a knife, stabbing him in his back, the police said.
In CCTV footage of the fight that broke out near his home, a group can be seen, armed with lathi and sticks.
"So far, during the investigation, it has surfaced that the quarrel started during a birthday party over the shutdown of a restaurant. It was business rivalry," the police said.
But Rinku Sharma's family alleges the fight erupted over a rally he had organized last year to raise donations for the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. He was associated with both the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). His brother Manu Sharma said he was also active in the Bajrang Dal.
The family says he had been threatened repeatedly over the past few months.
"On August 5, we had taken out a rally for the construction of the Ram Temple. At that time too, we were harassed. They had threatened us. Then he (Rinku Sharma) was murdered on Wednesday. They used to object to the chanting of 'Jai Shri Ram'," he said.
"When my son was being killed, at that time too, he was chanting 'Jai Shri Ram'," his mother said, alleging that there were "30 to 40 people with lathi, sticks and knives".
The BJP's Delhi president Adesh Gupta visited the family and assured all support and financial help.
"We are deeply saddened by the brutal murder of Rinku Sharma, who was active in the fund collection drive for the Ram Temple. The police acted fast and arrested the accused. We demand a fast track court and the toughest possible punishment," Mr Gupta tweeted in Hindi. He also asked the Delhi Government to provide Rs 1 crore for the family.
Security has been increased in the area after the murder.
The Delhi Police, however, denied any communal link to the murder and asserted that the trigger was business rivalry.
"Any other motive alluding to this incident is factually wrong," Sudhanshu Dhama, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer), told news agency ANI.
When asked about Mr Sharma's family's claims that he was murdered after he chanted "Jai Shri Ram", Delhi Police spokesperson Chinmoy Biswal told reporters, "We're in touch with the family. We're probing all angles."