Prime accused in Kasganj violence, youth's murder nabbed

Lucknow: One of the prime accused in the Kasganj communal violence, Salim Javed, was arrested on Wednesday, a police officer said, adding that based on leads provided by him, police are looking for the other accused as well.

There are a dozen persons accused of triggering the violence and inciting mobs on the Republic Day in Kasganj district which led to the killing of one person.

Salim was arrested from a hideout in Kasganj and the police are now looking for his two brothers Naseem and Waseem, who are reportedly close to the Samajwadi Party (SP). An illegal pistol was also recovered from his house during a raid.

The officer claimed the arrested person had admitted to shooting at Chandan Gupta, who died later, leading to a spate of arson and mob violence in Kasganj.

So far, 145 persons have been arrested for their alleged role in the violence.

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The National Security Act (NSA) would be slapped on the accused, he said and claimed that a photo album had been recovered from his house. The investigators are now trying to find other linkages through the pictures of some persons in the album.

Meanwhile, situation in the violence-hit town has normalised, though a tense calm prevails and people are on the edge with apprehensions that there might be some more trouble in store. Security deployment continues in the district and extensive police patrolling is going on.

The police have also arrested some leaders and workers of the Rashtriya Lok dal (RLD), who were trying to enter the strife-torn areas in a bid to meet the people affected in the violence.