The murder of a cow shelter worker in Chhattisgarh’s Kabirdham district last month was an “act of terror” aimed at spreading fear ahead of the consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the police has claimed.
Kabirdham Superintendent of Police Abhishek Pallava confirmed that the provisions of the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act (UAPA), 2008, was slapped on two of the six accused in the case. He added that this was perhaps the first time in Chhattisgarh that the UAPA has been invoked in a case that does not deal with Naxalism.
It was on January 20 that Sadhram Yadav, a 48-year-old cow shelter worker, was found murdered with his throat slit. The police arrested six persons, including a minor, in connection with the murder. While the incident that took place in Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma’s home turf had drawn considerable public attention due to the communal undertone, the police had not disclosed the motive till now.
