Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Social media and alertness of local youths played an important role in identification and arrest of Salman aka Nazar, the man accused of raping a six-year-old girl in Raisen district on November 21.
Salman was spotted at 9 pm on Thursday night while he was searching for a rented room in the densely populated Sector-11 of Gandhi Nagar.
Asif, a local youth, noticed him loitering around and immediately sensed something unusual. Asif had recently seen Instagram reels carrying photographs of Raisen child rape accused and found striking resemblance with the suspect before him. Believing his instinct, Asif clicked Salman’s photo and sent it to his friends Rizwan and Raja with the details. The duo immediately reached the spot.
When questioned, the suspect introduced himself as Nazar, which further strengthened their suspicion.
Sensing that he was being recognised and may be caught, Salman tried to slip on different pretexts.
However, Asif and Rizwan, who both do centring works at construction sites, took him to nearby Mamu Tea Stall on pretext of having tea while assuring him of help. They kept him engaged there.
Meanwhile, Rizwan called police constable Rahul Guru earlier posted at Gandhi Nagar police station and presently working at Khajuri police station. He sent him the photograph of the suspect.
Rahul reached the spot soon and forwarded the image to Raisen police. Within minutes, confirmation arrived that the man was indeed the wanted accused.
Accused was drunk
Locals said Salman was drunk and was loitering in the neighbourhood for quite some time. He sat inside an empty autorickshaw for a while. When Asif sought identity proof needed for rented accommodation, Salman claimed he neither had documents nor a mobile phone.
Some residents also claimed that Salman had lived in the same area two years ago and worked as a painter. They said he tried to mislead the police and claimed he was from Ashta.
His confident attitude indicated that he had no remorse for what he had done, locals added. Asif and Rizwan said that if any reward is announced for their role, they would hand it over to the victim’s kin.
