In Amravati chemist's murder, family seeks fast-track trial

More than ten days after a chemist was killed in Maharashtra's Amravati allegedly for supporting comments by former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, his family has now sought a trial in a fast-track court. The case is said to be similar to the beheading of a tailor this week in Rajasthan's Udaipur. Both the cases are being investigated by the NIA (National Investigation Agency), and the Amravati murder has been declared as a "terror act" by the central agency.

Umesh Kolhe's brother, Mahesh, on Sunday demanded the trial be done in a fast-track court. Adding that “maximum possible punishment should be given to the culprits”, he said that they knew the arrested accused - Yusuf Khan - since 2006 as he was “good friends” with his brother. “Through the police note, we found out that my brother was murdered over his post on Nupur Sharma. He was good friends with Yusuf Khan (arrested accused). The mastermind has been arrested so the pace of the investigation will undoubtedly increase,” Mahesh Kolhe told news agency ANI.