Updated: September 27, 2020 10:57:56 am
Mumbai police said that Raval, who, like the victim, hails from Rapar, had clashed with Maheshwari over his views on Brahminism.
An employee of a stationery store in Malad West, Mumbai, was arrested on Saturday, less than 24 hours after he allegedly murdered a Dalit lawyer and activist in Gujarat’s Kutch district for his posts on social media.
The victim, Devji Maheshwari, was a high-ranking activist from the All India Minority and Backward Communities Employees Federation (BAMCEF) and the Legal Professionals Association of India.
Devji Maheshwari’s latest Facebook post was a video from BAMCEF National Chairman Waman Meshram saying that members of the programmed castes, programmed tribes and other backward classes are not Hindus.
Mumbai police said that Bharat Raval, who, like the victim, hails from Rapar, had clashed with Maheshwari over his views on Brahminism. Maheshwari wrote and shared posts critical of Brahminism on his Facebook page. Raval did not agree with those views and warned Maheshwari on several occasions to refrain from writing such publications publicly, ”said an official from the Criminal Unit.
According to the police, both Maheshwari and Raval had clashed repeatedly over the past month. “Raval, who is Brahmin, had asked Maheshwari not to create problems since they are both from the same village. He also threatened him once in his office. But Maheshwari told him that he would not back down and challenged him to do what he wanted, ”the official said.
Maheshwari’s last Facebook post was a video from BAMCEF National Chairman Waman Meshram saying that members of the programmed castes, programmed tribes and other backward classes are not Hindus.
Raval, Mumbai police said, traveled to Rapar from Malad on Wednesday with the intention of assassinating Maheshwari. CCTV footage from the area showed Maheshwari entering his office building at 6 p.m. Friday and a man in a red T-shirt following him inside. Seconds later, the man runs out of the building and flees.
Raval was booked on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy and under sections of Law SC / ST at the Rapar police station. A Gujarat police team arrived in Mumbai late Saturday night to take custody of the Raval.
The Crime Section official said Raval, who was identified as the man in the CCTV footage, was acting alone. However, the Gujarat police have registered an FIR against nine defendants, including Raval. On Saturday, hours after members of the Rapar Dalit community took to the streets to demand the arrest of the Maheshwari attackers, five of the nine defendants, in addition to Raval, were arrested, while the others fled.
On Saturday, VL Matang, national chairman of the Bahujan Mukti Party, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting an IWC investigation into the murder. “The (Kutch) district police registered an FIR at 1 am on Saturday, eight hours after the murder occurred, and named nine people as defendants… The behavior of the police appears suspicious and we suspect that the district administration is trying to protect the accused. We expect you to issue an order for a CBI investigation within 24 hours after this letter reaches your office, “he wrote.
Meanwhile, the victim’s family, supported by local Dalit organizations and community members, refused to accept the body until all of the accused were arrested. The body has been kept in the government hospital.
Inspector General of Police (Border Range) JR Mothaliya said: “The victim belonged to a programmed caste … It is their demand that they accept the body and perform the last rites only after the nine are arrested.”
Besides Raval, the other defendants named in the FIR are: Jaysukh Luhar, Khimji Luhar, Dhaval Luhar, Devubha Sodha, Vijaysinh Sodha, Mayursinh Sodha, Pravinsinh Sodha and Arjansinh Sodha.
While Mothaliya said the motive for the killing had not yet been determined, local Dalit activists, as well as the victim’s family, alleged that the killing was due to a property case that Maheshwari was fighting.
According to the FIR, which was registered based on a complaint from the victim’s wife, Minaxiben Maheshwari, around 7.30 am on Friday, Maheshwari left his Rapar residence in a private vehicle for Bhuj, for a legal matter in relation to the property case involving a Luhar Community Hall, and he returned home at 3.30pm, after which he went to his office.
In her complaint, Minaxiben said: “No attorney was ready to take the case from the community room, and my husband did, and he kept the files related to the case with him and had tried several times in vain to file an FIR (related to the dispute) at the police station. Because he had the files, the rival party used to threaten to kill my husband, and I suspect that they hired Bharat Jayantilal Raval to kill him. “
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