Prime accused in Sambhal violence case traced abroad, extradition efforts on

The SP said that other accused persons involved in planning and inciting the violence will face action under the NSA.

Lucknow: Shariq Sata — one of the prime accused in last year’s violence in Sambhal during a court mandated survey of a mosque there in which four persons were killed — has been traced to a Gulf country and efforts are on to extradite him.

According to the police sources, a look out notice had been issued against Shariq and he was also among the list of major auto-lifting gangs in the country.

Sources said that Shariq also remains in touch with fugitive Dawood Ibrahim’s ‘D-gang’ and the Pakistani spy agency ISI. He was earlier arrested by the Delhi police on charges of running a fake currency racket but he managed to flee abroad using a fake passport after getting bail.

Shariq runs his gang from Dubai, sources said.

A police official said in Sambhal that NSA had been slapped on another accused Mulla Afroz, who was charged with opening fire during the violence as a result of which four people were killed.

Afroz was arrested in January this year and was lodged in jail since then. NSA would also be slapped on two other accused persons identified as Ghulam and Waris, who too had opened fire during the violence.

Sources said that Shariq had provided arms and ammunition to them.

Four persons were killed and several others, including cops were injured when large scale violence flared up in Sambhal during the court mandated survey of the Jama Masjid in November last year.

The survey was ordered on the petition of the Hindus, who claimed that the mosque was built after demolishing a temple by the Muslim invaders.