Junaid Khan’s murderer arrested in Maharashtra

‘As per the police, lack of witnesses was a huge obstacle, even though the compartment in which Junaid was lynched was packed with people.’

NEW DELHI:  16-year-old Junaid Khan was stabbed to death on a train in Haryana last month. The killer has been arrested from Maharashtra.

“The accused have confessed to stabbing Junaid Khan,” said the Faridabad Police whilst hiding the identity of the assailant for legal reasons.

The suspect, who was arrested from Maharashtra’s Dhule district, will be presented in court tomorrow.

The arrest comes just days after the police in Haryana admitted they had wrongly identified the person they suspected was the main accused in the case. The police on Monday had also offered Rs. 2 lakh for any information that could lead to the killer.

Last week, the police said that one of three men seen on a bike near the station where Junaid was thrown off the train was the alleged murderer. By then, it had arrested five people for the death of the teen, who was accused, along with his young companions, of carrying beef in their bags.

As per the police, lack of witnesses was a huge obstacle, even though the compartment in which Junaid was lynched was packed with people.

Junaid Khan’s lynching has been collected from from his brother, Haseeb, and two cousins, who were also injured.

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned that killing people in the name of protecting cows is unacceptable. His comments came after thousands held protests in different cities against the spate of recent assaults.

Among the five people in jail for Junaid Khan’s murder is an employee of the Delhi government.

Junaid Khan and his brothers were returning to their village on Haryana after a day-trip to Delhi to shop for Eid when a murderous mob turned on them.

“My skull cap was pulled off my head and my beard was tugged while the crowd shouted abuses in addition to yelling “anti-nationals” and “beef-eaters”,” said Haseeb.