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4 Al Umma activists held for BJP activist's murder

Four activists of the banned Al Umma were arrested at Tiruchirapalli this morning in connection with the murder of Dr V Sridhar, Bharatiya Janata Party, Triuchirapalli town president on February 2.

Additional DGP V K Rajagopalan told reporters today that the police were on the look-out for seven other conspirators in the offence. The arrested were being produced in a court in Tiruchirapalli. Another person involved in the murder had already been arrested in connection with another case and was in a Tirunelveli jail.

A joint team of the CB-CID and Special Investigation Team has been formed to nab the rest of the assailants.

Dr Sridhar was a popular doctor who had his clinic in a Muslim-dominated area.

Rajagopalan said religious fundamentalism was the motive behind the crime. Dr Sridhar had reportedly sent kar sevaks to Ayodhya in 1992, when Babri Masjid was demolished. This could possibly be the reason for the murder, Rajagopalan said.

Rajagopalan said the conspiracy to eliminate the doctor was hatched shortly after Ramzan, and two of the conspirators had visited his clinic posing as patients apparently to trail his movements.

Rajagopalan gave the names of the arrested as Galiloor Rahman (29), Mohamad Farooke (25), Badhusha (19) and Thamimun Ansari (19).

So far 12 accused had been identified by the investigation team led by superintendent of police V A Ravikumar.

He said Shahjahan of Melapalayam, one of the assailants who was also involved in the murder of Hindu Munnanai activist Selvakumar at Pathamadai in Tirunelveli district was the chief perpetrator of the crime. He was now in judicial custody at Palayamkottai.

Rajagopalan said Dr Sridhar was an hardcore RSS activist.

Four special teams of the CB-CID had been constituted to nab the rest of the accused, he said.

Rajagopalan said the 12 assailants belonged to the Al Umma and the Islamic Defence Force, a splinter organisation of the Islamic Jehad.

A weapon used for committing the murder had been seized from the scene of the crime, he said.

The assailants had also targeted Hindu Munnani activist Rama Gunaseelan of Tiruchirapalli who had since been given police protection, he said.

Some of the assailants were also involved in the bomb blasts on running trains at Tiruchirapalli and Trissur on December 6,1997. The Islamic Defence Force had claimed responsibility for the blasts.

Investigations revealed that two of the arrested -- Tamimum Ansari and Badsha -- had trailed Dr Sreedhar and in consultation with others had chosen the place for committing the murder. Galiloor Rahman and Mohamed Farooke had harboured the accused and also fed information about the victim.

Rajagopalan answered in the negative when asked whether there was a pattern in the murder of RSS and Hindu Munnani leaders.

Most of the members of Al Umma had been arrested in connection with the case relating to the serial bomb blasts at Coimbatore on February 14 last year.

The other wanted assailants were: Tada Moosa, who funded the operation, Syed Ali, Siddiq Ali, Raja alias Sadiq, Umar Farooq, Aliyur alias Ashraf Ali and Sheikh Jenda Madhar.

UNI

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