Kanhaiya Lal Sahu (Udaipur Murder Case) Age, Death, Wife, Children, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Kanhaiya Lal Sahu

• Lal has two sons who belong to the Hindu Teli community.

• On 11 June 2022, Lal’s neighbour, Nazim, filed a case against him for a social media post that supported Nupur Sharma, a BJP spokesperson.

• Soon, Lal got arrested but was later released on bail.

• On 15 June 2022, Lal requested the local police for protection after he received death threats. In his complaint, Lal said that Nazim and five others were threatening him.

• He also claimed that they shared his photo on social media in their community with a message that he should be killed if seen or if he opened his shop.

• The police claimed that they settled the dispute between Nazim and Lal.

• Later, Kanhaiya told police that he did not want any more action on the case. He explained that the social media post was shared accidentally by his son while playing a game on the phone.

• Lal also claimed that he himself did not know how to use a phone.

• Muhammad Riyaz Attari, one of the accused, recorded a video on 17 June 2022 saying that he wanted to commit murder for remarks against Prophet Muhammad.

• In the video, Attari also said that he wanted it to go ‘viral’ and that he did not care about the consequences.

• On 28 June 2022, two men entered Lal’s tailor shop pretending to be customers.

  

  Kanhaiya Lal Sahu while taking the measurement of one of the accused

• At around 2:45 p.m., when Lal started taking measurements, they attacked him with cleavers.

• The whole attack was recorded on video by the assailants.

• After overpowering Lal, they dragged him out of the shop and slit his throat with a knife, which they had made at their welding workshop.

• Lal was stabbed in different parts of his body. One of Lal’s shop assistants tried to save him but suffered serious head injuries.

• Reportedly, the other shopkeepers nearby did not attempt to help.

• The attackers initially fled on foot and then escaped on a motorcycle.

• Later, they made another video boasting about the murder, saying that it was to avenge the insult to Islam. In this video, they also threatened India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• After the incident, local markets were closed and traders demanded the arrest of the attackers. Several protests for quick action took place in different parts of India.

• In Udaipur, authorities imposed a 24-hour curfew and cut off internet services across Rajasthan.

• The central government sent the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to investigate the case.

• During the investigations, police said that the attackers tried to behead Kanhaiya Lal but failed.

• On 28 June 2022, the Rajasthan government announced Rs. 50 lakh compensation for Kanhaiya Lal’s family.

• On 2 July 2022, BJP leader Kapil Mishra visited Kanhaiya’s family and announced Rs. 1 crore compensation for them. He also announced Rs. 25 lakh for Ishvar, who was injured in the attack.

  

  BJP leader Kapil Mishra during a visit to Kanhaiya’s family

• After this, Rs. 5 lakh was announced for police constable Sandeep, who was injured by a violent mob.

• On 6 July 2022, the government gave jobs to Kanhaiya Lal’s two sons.

• During the police investigations, the attackers were identified as Muhammad Riyaz Attari (from Bhilwara) and Ghaus Muhammad (who worked as a chit fund operator and broker).

  

  A picture of Ghaus Muhammad and Muhammad Riyaz

• Both were welders, had moved to Udaipur years ago, and lived in the Khanjipeer area.

• They belonged to the Barelvi sect of Sunni Islam and were members of Dawat-e-Islami, an organisation based in Karachi, Pakistan, led by Muhammad Ilyas Attar Qadri.

• Reportedly, Ghaus Muhammad had attended Dawat-e-Islami religious sessions in Karachi in 2014.

• The surname ‘Attari’ used by Muhammad Riyaz indicated being a follower of Muhammad Ilyas Attar Qadri.

• The attackers of Kanhaiya Lal were caught by police in Rajsamand district, Rajasthan, on 28 June 2022, while trying to escape.

• A 2020 Facebook post showed Attari being described as a dedicated BJP worker by a local BJP and RSS leader.

• Attari rode a motorbike with a special number plate ‘2611,’ referring to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

  

  A picture of Muhammad Riyaz Attari’s motorbike with a special number plate ‘2611’

• During questioning, the attackers claimed they were ‘self-radicalised.’

• Police also found that their first plan was to kill Lal at his home.

• Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused the BJP of having links with the killers. Gehlot claimed that BJP leaders had earlier helped them get released from police custody in another case.

  

  Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot while meeting the family members of Kanhaiya Lal Sahu

• In Udaipur, about 7,000 people joined a silent protest march after the murder.

• During the same time, the United Nations spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric urged global peace and religious harmony.

• The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) condemned the murder, saying that taking the law into one’s own hands was against both Indian law and Islamic Sharia.

• Maulana Mahmood Madani, head of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, called the incident a disgrace to humanity and to Islam. Madani said that no one had the right to take the law into their own hands.

• Jamaat-e-Islami Hind called the act barbaric and uncivilised, stating that Islam allowed no justification for violence and peace must not be disturbed.

• Shahabuddin Razvi from the Barelvi All India Tanzeem Ulama-e-Islam condemned the attack and said that Muslims should not take the law into their own hands but leave punishment to the government.

• Hindu groups like the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal held protests demanding strict action against the killers.

• The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) did not comment, but its allied group, Muslim Rashtriya Manch, demanded the death penalty for the attackers.

• Geert Wilders, a Dutch politician, condemned the killing and warned Indian Hindus against appeasing Muslims.

• Amnesty International also condemned the incident and asked the Indian government to act against the attackers.

  

  Activists of Bajrang Dal, a Hindu hardline group, shout slogans during a protest against the killing of Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur, a day after two Muslim men posted a video claiming responsibility for slaying him, in New Delhi, India

• In 2024, a Hindi film called Udaipur Files, directed by Bharat S. Srinate and produced by Amit Jani, was announced.

• The film was based on the 2022 murder of tailor Kanhaiya Lal Sahu in Udaipur and was planned to be released on 11 July 2025.

• After the trailer came out, the film faced major controversy, with claims that it spread communal hatred and targeted the Muslim community.

• On 10 July 2025, the Delhi High Court stopped the release of the film after a petition by Maulana Arshad Madani (Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind), journalist Prashant Tandon, and others.

• Senior lawyer Kapil Sibal argued that the film was ‘hate speech,’ dangerous for public peace, and could affect the fair trial of the accused.

• The court told the petitioners to seek review under the Cinematograph Act (Section 6) and asked the Central Government to decide on film certification. The case was under judicial review.

• The film later flopped at the box office. The producer of the film, Amit Jani, blamed the Hindu community for not supporting the film.

  

  The poster of the film Udaipur Files