Deserted streets, downed shutters as Udaipur remains on edge | Watch

There is tension across the city after a man was beheaded for supporting ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, suspended by the party for her controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad.

Streets wore a deserted look and shops remained closed amid eerie calm in Udaipur on Wednesday, the first morning after a man was beheaded for supporting former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, who was suspended from the party earlier this month for her controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad.

A screengrab from the video uploaded by ANI.

A video shared by ANI showed empty roads and downed shutters, with heavy police presence on the ground. At one point, a policeman is seen flagging down the person recording the video, presumably the news agency’s cameraperson.

Rajasthan’s lake city is the on the edge after the victim, Kanhaiya Lal, a tailor by profession, was hacked to death at 2:30pm on Tuesday inside his shop in the Maldas street area. The two killers, identified as Mohammad Riyaz Akhtari and Gaus Mohammed, entered the shop posing as customers; of the two, Akhtari repeatedly slashed Lal’s neck with a knife, while Mohammed filmed the grisly act.

The duo also threatened to physically harm prime minister Narendra Modi. They were later arrested by the police from the Rajsamand district.

Meanwhile, as tensions gripped the city and protests erupted against the killing, authorities clamped prohibitory measures in Udaipur, and across the state. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot urged people to maintain peace and refrain from sharing the video of the killing. Gehlot also appealed to PM Modi to address the nation to calm down rising communal tensions.

Politicians, cutting across party lines, have condemned the incident and urged the Gehlot government to ensure speedy justice for the victim.