LUCKNOW/GORAKHPUR: A day after IIT Bombay graduate Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi attacked two PAC jawans at the gate of Gorakhnath Temple, security agencies said on Monday that terror angle has not been ruled out in the case.
The attack is being jointly probed by the Anti-Terrorist Squad and the Special Task Force of Uttar Pradesh Police.
Additional chief security, home, Awanish Awasthi said the terror angle in the attack has not been ruled out yet. Security at prominent places in the state has been beefed up.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh for the cops who foiled the attack.
PAC jawans Gopal Gaur and Anil Paswan deployed at the gates of Gorakhnath Temple were injured when the accused, Ahmad Murtaza Abbasi, attacked them unprovoked with a sickle and tried to enter the temple. Murtaza, who was overpowered, also suffered injuries during police action. Murtaza, a Gorakhpur resident, shouted religious slogans while attacking the cops.
Two FIRs have been lodged with Gorakhpur police in connection with the attack.
Murtaza told the police that he had gone to Nepal and while returning bought a sickle from Maharajganj. "His statement is being verified and some persons have been rounded up for questioning," said an ATS officer. An ATS team also interrogated Murtaza's father Munir who claimed his son was not of sound mental health.
An ATS officer said that CCTVs installed at the Gorakhnath Temple are being scanned to check if Murtaza had visited it earlier for a recce and had planned the attack.
