Congress leader Farooq Moltani (54) and his son Imtiyaz (24) were hacked to death on Wednesday night in Gujarat’s Morbi. The father-son duo was killed at their doorsteps by one Rafiq Jeda and four others with whom they had an old political rivalry.
Farooq who was the vice-president of the Morbi Municipality during the last term had an altercation with Rafiq and the other accused a few years ago during the panchayat elections. As per the police, they were at loggerheads since the poll.
Reportedly, Farooq on Wednesday at around 8:30 PM received a call from Rafiq who dared him to come outside his home. “As soon as Farooq opened the door, he was attacked by Rafiq and his men with knives and other sharp weapons. They also attacked Farooq’s son Imtiyaz when he tried to intervene. The assailants later fled the spot,” informed the police.
Both Farooq and Imtiyaz were rushed to a private hospital in Morbi, but the two succumbed to their injuries.
Farooq’s wife Razia has lodged a complaint against Rafiq Jeda, Asgar Bhatti, Jusab Bhatti, Ashif Sumra and Moin Davalia for double murder.
Farooq, a resident of Madina society in Visipara, Morbi was a real estate developer while his son Imtiyaz owned a garment shop.
Series of murders shock Morbi
On September 12 the Morbi district police had arrested four of the 13 accused in the murder of a scrap dealer Mohammed Hanif Kasmani alias Mammu Dadhi.
Dadhi was shot dead on September 10 at Bhaktinagar Circle by Ismail Makrani, his brother Irfan Makrani, Riyaz Dosani Ezaz Chaniya and nine others. The hunt for others is on. The police also recovered a firearm and a cartridge suspected to have been used by the assailants.
In another case, Raghu Koli and Navghan Koli were killed following a tiff over a bidi in Juna Jogadh village of Morbi district on September 12. Efforts are being made to identify the ones involved in the murder.