THRISSUR:The FIR in the Haneefa murder case, accessed by the Express, sighted witness report that the murder was due to political rivalry between the two Congress groups.
Going by the report, a neighbour of Haneefa had given a statement to Additional SI A V Radhakrishnan at 11 pm on August 7, when the incident took place, that a group of 10 had barged into the home of the deceased and stabbed Haneefa. According to the statement, the main involved are Shameer, Shafi, Ansar, Sachin, Afsal and Fasalu. The incident occurred at 9: 30 pm. The FIR points out accused 1 to 6 are responsible for dragging Haneefa out of his house at Baby Road, Andath Chalil, before the prime accused Shameer stabbed him in the chest. Another four, which the witness could recognise on sight, were present at the crime scene. The gang further stabbed and injured Shakeer, who was with Haneefa at the time.
The case has been registered under IPC sections 147, 148, 341, 323, 324, 447, 448, 506 and 302, along with 142. Furthermore, a police directly involved in the investigation has given a statement that the investigation, in its preliminary stages, considered the murder to be politically motivated.
“Unless and until another witness or evidence that contradicts the same, the investigation will consider it as a political murder,” the official said. The statement assumes importance in light of officials recently claiming that the murder could, at least in part, be attributed to personal rivalry with the deceased. Haneefa had denied membership to some of the assaulters, in a club under his control, who were involved in alcohol and drug cartels. This was an impetus for the deadly attack, officials had claimed.
Haneefa’s brother Ummer, who arrived from the Gulf, recently said he strongly oppose to the police statements that the murder was out of personal rivalry. “I have collated all the evidences, complete with press cuttings, which prove that the issue is political, not personal as the police officials stated,” he told Express.