Mumbai/Amravati: The accused arrested in connection with the killing of Amravati pharmacist Umesh Kolhe were involved in terrorist activities, the NIA on Thursday told a court here. The special court for National Investigation Agency cases sent the seven accused in NIA custody till July 15 after hearing the arguments.
Kolhe was killed in eastern Maharashtra's Amravati on June 21, allegedly for sharing a post supporting suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma whose remarks about Prophet Mohammad had triggered a huge controversy. While the NIA sought the accused's custody for 15 days, special judge A K Lahoti remanded them in the custody of the federal probe agency till July 15.
There was "incremental substance" against the accused to show they were involved in terrorist activities, the NIA told the court. The accused had no personal enmity with Kolhe but their intention was to terrorize people, the prosecution said.
A similar crime had taken place elsewhere too, the NIA said, apparently referring to the murder of a tailor in Udaipur who had supported Nupur Sharma. The seven accused in the Umesh Kolhe (chemist) murder case were taken to Mumbai by the NIA on Wednesday in strict secrecy after a search operation was conducted by the Amravati police.
Also read: Amravati Murder: Umesh Kolhe's post-mortem clarifies reasons for death
In addition to this, the NIA has also conducted raids in 13 parts of the city, for the collection of evidence in the murder case. Search operations were carried out in the homes of the accused at various places, like Hatipura, Gulista Nagar, Al Karimnagar, Kamela Gorund, Bilal Colony, and Chhaya Nagar within the Nagpur Gate and City Kothwali Police Station limits.
The NIA also recorded the statements of some people in the Hatipura area, while mobile phones, SIM cards, memory cards, pamphlets, knives, and some documents were seized by them during the search operation.
Sohail Nadi, the district president of the Popular Front of India, a group that financed the Rahebar Helpline, also questioned Sheikh Irfan, the main accused in the Umesh Kolhe murder case till late last night. The NIA is simultaneously investigating whether Sheikh Irfan's Rahebar Helpline is being funded from abroad and whether the radical organization's Rahebar Helpline has anything to do with the murder case.
The NIA is currently operating a total of five teams in the city of Amravati, all of which are conducting a highly confidential investigation. It has been learned that the NIA is searching for the extremists hiding in the city of Amravati in connection to the Umesh Kohle murder case. (with Agency inputs)
