In a crucial development, the National Investigation Agency has arrested an accused named Shali alias Myden Ahmed Shali, a 51-year-old resident of Thenkasi, Tamil Nadu, in connection with the murder of activist Ramalingam. Shali was arrested from Ernakulam.

According to a report in One India, the NIA arrested a Muslim man named Myden Ahmed Shali, the head of one ‘Dawah’ team, for the killing of 42-year-old Hindu activist and PMK leader Ramalingam on the morning of 5th February 2019 at Pakku Vinayagam Thoppu in Kumbakonam, Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu. Reports say that the Dawah team headed by Shali had confronted Ramalingam on the day of the murder.

The accused Ahmed Shali had allegedly brutally murdered Hindu activist Ramalingam after the latter had attempted to stop the forceful religious conversions in the area. According to NIA, Shali had regularly attended the conspiracy meetings of the Islamists organisations PFI and SDPI, wherein the attack against Ramalingam was planned.

Earlier, the NIA has stated the motive was not only to limited to brutally killing Ramalingam but also to create communal tensions. The NIA had even stated that the murder of Ramalingam was a terrorist act, as he was killed for opposing religious conversion by Muslim preachers. Most of the accused belonged to PFI.

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“The investigation revealed that the accused persons had hatched criminal conspiracy, recruited persons, collected weapon, collected vehicles etc, for committing the terrorist act and acted themselves as a terrorist gang. Moreover, the statements of witnesses, as well as the confession of the accused persons, reveal that they were in promotion of ‘Jihadi’ activities which has to be probed further during the course of the investigation,” the NIA report had read.

Earlier in May, the NIA had arrested another PFI member named Mohammad Faruk in connection with the murder. Tamil Nadu police had earlier arrested 10 persons before NIA took over the case.