Hindutva leader, who shot Gandhi effigy, arrested in murder case

Lucknow: Controversial Hindutva leader and office bearer of the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM), Puja Shakun Pandey, has been arrested in a case of murder of a businessman. The case pertains to the gunning down of the businessman, 25-year-old Abhishek Gupta, by two assailants in Aligarh’s Roravar area on September 26. Gupta was with his father and was boarding a bus to Hathras when the assailants opened fire on him. Despite being rushed to the hospital, Gupta succumbed to his injuries.

Puja Shakun Pandey caught headlines after she shot at the effigy of Mahatma Gandhi, on his death anniversary in 2019, chanting ‘Mahatma Nathuram Godse’. Visuals of the incident were viral on social media, and she and her organisation observed the day as “Shaurya Divas” in Aligarh. She had also publicly praised Godse.

According to the murder case of the Gupta, Puja and her husband Ashok Pandey hired two shooters, namely Mohd Fazal and Asif, to kill Gupta, and a case was registered against the couple on the night of the murder itself.

Puja had been absconding since the night of the murder, and police said that she was arrested from Bharatpur in Rajasthan late Friday night. When police claim that a business deal went sour between Puja and Abhishek, the victim’s family claimed that Puja had been sexually harassing him for a long time. According to the family, Puja planned the murder after Abhishek broke all ties with her.

Police further informed that they arrested Mohd Fazal last week and Asif on October 3. Asif was a wanted criminal in other cases, too, the police added.