Rajasthan: Shambu Lal Raigar, who hacked Muslim labourer to death 'honoured' with tableau on Ram Navami

On the occasion of Ram Navami, even as the nation celebrated Lord Rama, a tableau in Jodhpur in Rajasthan was dedicated to Shambu Lal Rajgar, the man who brutally murdered a Bengali Muslim labourer in Rajsamand district in Rajasthan.

The tableau shows Shambu Lal Raigar seating like a king on a throne holding a pickaxe which resembles the weapon he had used to murder the Muslim labourer, reported Aaj Tak.

On the tableau it’s written: “'Hindu brothers wake up, save your sister or daughter.” On the other side was a picture of the man who set up the tableau – Hari Singh Rathod. Rathod is the co-treasurer of Shiv Sena in Jodhpur and is reportedly associated with the RSS.

He told Aaj Tak that Muslim boys in Jodhpur were ‘marrying one Hindu girl after another and exploiting them to change their religion’. He claimed they were trying to spread awareness about ‘love jihad’.

On the charges against Shambu Lal Raigar he said: “Today, such cases are being seen everywhere. There are so many cases in our neighbourhood where Hindu girls are being misled and being driven away from home. In such a situation, what Shambhu did was absolutely fine. he will definitely get justice.” 

Rajasthan: Tableau taken out in Jodhpur on #RamNavami to honour murderer, who hacked a man to death & set the body on fire in Rajsamand last year. The killer, Shambhu Lal, had also recorded the act on video & uploaded it on social media, in December. pic.twitter.com/ApbH7SsCkJ

— ANI (@ANI) March 27, 2018

Raigar had been in the new even after going to jail when his videos, purportedly shot in jail went viral.

Raigar had killed Afrazul while, in a video, ranting against "love jihad", a term used by sections of Hindu activists to describe marriages between Hindu women and Muslim men.

In the latest video, Raigar said he was "infuriated" over a "jihadist comment", targeting Hindu women, and that was why he had killed Afrazul.

The Jodhpur Central Jail administration said it had launched an "intense search operation" to find out how Raigar was able to make the videos using a cell phone. According to a preliminary investigation, Raigar could have used the cell phone of another inmate, but the jail authorities have failed to recover a mobile from the said inmate.

Jail Superintendent Vikram Singh said they were investigating the matter and had also reviewed the security of Raigar.

Singh said the presence of mobile phones inside the jail was a "serious matter" and added that the prison authorities were trying to find out how the phones were making their way into the prison.

Raigar was arrested from Rajsamand district of Rajasthan.

His act of killing Afrazul and latter filming the act with the help of his teenage nephew had created a nationwide outrage.

With inputs from PTI