Mother Of Hindu Group Leader Killed In UP Alleges Politician Ordered Hit

The mother of Kamlesh Tiwari, the leader of a political party in Uttar Pradesh who was killed at his house in Lucknow on Friday, has alleged he was killed by a local politician over a land dispute. His son, Satyam Tiwari, has said he does not "trust anyone" and wants the anti-terror National Investigation Agency to probe the case.

"No one asked me what I feel, who I suspect. He (local politician) got my son killed. He is a land mafia. We had a dispute over a temple land," Kamlesh Tiwari's mother, Kusum, told reporters outside her house.

When reporters asked Uttar Pradesh Police chief OP Singh about Kusum Tiwari's allegations at a press conference, Mr Singh declined to comment.

"We want the National Investigation Agency to probe the case. We do not trust anyone. My father was killed although he had security guards. How can we possibly trust the administration then?" Satyam Tiwari said.

Kamlesh Tiwari, 43, was a leader of the Hindu Samaj Party. His throat was cut and he was shot multiple times by a group at his house in Lucknow.

Kamlesh Tiwari had been provided with armed security - two gunners and a guard - by a local police station. On the day of his murder, the gunners were absent. The police said the guard stopped the suspects at the gate and only allowed them through after checking with Mr Tiwari.

"I don't know if the men arrested murdered my father or if someone else did and innocent people are being framed. If these are the actual culprits and the police have video evidence, the NIA should take over the probe. If they probe and this (the arrests) is proved, we will be satisfied. We do not have belief in this administration," Satyam Tiwari said.

Kamlesh Tiwari was killed at his house in Lucknow

Five people have been arrested for the murder of Kamlesh Tiwari, the UP Police chief Mr Singh said today. Three were arrested in Gujarat in a joint operation between the police of the two states. The two others are Muslim clerics from western UP's Bijnor district. They were named in a First Information Report (FIR) filed by Kamlesh Tiwari's wife. Two more accused, those believed to have carried out the attack, are on the run.

The men arrested in Gujarat have been identified as Maulana Mohsin Sheikh, 24, Rasheed Ahmed Pathan, 23, and Faizan, 21. The clerics are Maluana Anwar-Ul Haq and Mufti Naeem Kazmin, according to news agency ANI.

Police believe Rasheed Pathan was the mastermind, while Faizan bought a box of sweets the killers used to gain entry into Mr Tiwari's house.

"We were confident we would solve the case in 24 hours and we have done so. Based on clues we formed small teams and fanned out to UP and elsewhere. From the beginning we had a hunch this was related to Gujarat," the police officer said today, after CCTV footage indicated the box was from a confectionery in Gujarat's Surat.

"We found a sweets box at the incident spot and we found many clues in it. I spoke to the Gujarat DGP and we sent our team there. There was strong coordination between the Gujarat police and us," he said. "Two other accused who carried out the attack in Lucknow... Trying to arrest them soonest."

OP Singh said investigations have ruled out any terror angle and that the main focus of the killing was a defamatory comment Mr Tiwari allegedly made about Prophet Mohammad in 2015. The police said that in 2016, one of the clerics named in the FIR had placed a bounty of Rs 51 lakh on Kamlesh Tiwari's life over that alleged remark.

On Friday, Mr Tiwari's wife demanded Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath meet her and her family. She threatened self-immolation if her husband's killers were not brought to justice, according to news agency ANI.

With inputs from ANI