LI Network
Published on: 30 January 2023 at 21:30 IST
A Special NIA Court awarded death sentence to Ahmed Murtaza Abbasi for attacking security personnel at the Gorakhnath temple in Gorakhpur. Abbasi, an IIT graduate was charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for allegedly assaulting security personnel at the temple.
The verdict was announced after a record 60 days of continuous hearing. The accused had attacked two policemen outside the temple with a sharp-edged weapon in April last year.
On April 3, 2022, Abbasi tried to forcibly enter the Gorakhnath temple premises and attacked security personnel with a sickle, injuring two constables of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC). He was soon overpowered by other security staff and taken into custody. The investigation was conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS)
Notably, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is the head priest of the Gorakhnath temple and frequently visits and stays there.
Follower Of Zakir Naik, Ahmed Murtaza Abbasi
- As per Reports, Ahmed Murtaza was inspired by controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, who fled India in 2016.
- During investigation, cops had recovered suspicious items including videos related to jihad on his laptop and pen drive.
- Murtaza belonged to the 2015 batch of IIT-Mumbai and was a chemical engineer.
- He is a resident of Gorakhpur. However, Aadhaar card obtained from him was made in Mumbai.
- Speaking to a TV channel, Munir Abbasi, Murtaza’s father had claimed that his son was mentally unstable.