Special Cell takes over Umar Khalid attack case
New Delhi, Aug 14 : Delhi Police Special cell on Tuesday took over the case of attack on JNU scholar Umar Khalid by an unknown assailant here and scanned the CCTV footage, which shows a man running away from the place of crime, said a police official.
Khalid, accused of raising anti-national slogans in 2016, was attacked in the heart of the capital outside the Constitution Club, 500 metres away from Parliament, on Monday. He survived the bid on life because of his friends, he said.
After scanning the footage of CCTVs installed near the place where the crime took place, the probe team suspect a man who is seen running away from the location.
"We have scanned over 50 CCTV footages and are trying to identify the suspect," Deputy Commissioner of Police P.S. Kushwah said, adding that the image of the suspect is yet to be shown to the victim and witnesses.
On checking the revolver, the police team found that there were six live cartridges in its magazine, implying that no shot was fired.
However, according to witnesses, the sound of a gunshot was heard, raising questions about the presence of another weapon or another attacker but the police felt it was "premature" to come down to this conclusion.
"We have just taken over the case from New Delhi district police and it would be premature to make such speculation," he said.
Earlier, the police officer said: "We have recorded Umar Khalid's statement afresh and are trying to know about the people that had threatened him earlier too. We have got some good leads."
"The statements of eyewitness have also been recorded by the team to know the sequence of incident," the officer said.
In the FIR, Khalid said that the attacker came from behind and hit his head.
When Khalid turned back, he dragged him and whipped out a revolver aiming to shoot. Khalid's friend Saddak Hussain in the meantime tried to overpower the accused.
"The accused managed to escape and we heard the shot. We informed the local police and later found a revolver lying on a road near NITI Aayog," Khalid said in the FIR.
Khalid had gone to the Constitution Club to attend a "United Against Hate" programme where the listed speakers included noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan, MP Manoj Jha and journalist Amit Sen Gup
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PM Modi speaks to Iranian president, discusses 'serious' situation in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over the phone and discussed the "serious situation" in West Asia.
Modi expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions in the region and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.
The prime minister told the Iranian President that the safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India's top priorities.
“Had a conversation with Iranian President, Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, to discuss the serious situation in the region. Expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure,” Modi said in a post on X.
The prime minister also reiterated India's commitment to peace and stability and urged dialogue and diplomacy to end the crisis.
The prime minister had spoken to leaders of several West Asian countries in the last 10 days in the wake of the coordinated offensive launched against Iran by the United States and Israel, in which the Islamic country's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed last month.
In retaliation, Iran has fired drones and missiles at Israel and US military installations around the Gulf region, including the global business and aviation hubs of Dubai and Doha.
Modi earlier spoke to the leaders of Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, Israel and Qatar, and expressed concern over the attacks on their countries, and condemned the violation of some nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also discussed the welfare and security of the Indian community residing in those countries.
Around 1 crore Indians live in the Gulf and West Asia. While about 10,000 Indian citizens live, study and work in Iran, more than 40,000 live in Israel.
