Police make no headway into murder attempt case; Rahim Uchil recovers

It is learnt that police, during last 24-hours, have questioned several people including his relatives, friends and members of some organisations. A couple of hours after Thursday's brutal attack, Bajpe police had taken two persons from their jurisdiction into custody. However, both of them were released later in the evening.

Though the CCTV camera installed at the adjacent building of Presidium complex, in which the office of Beary Academy is located, had captured the scene of assailants entering into the office, their faces are not visible. All the six miscreants had covered their faces with kerchiefs. The CC TV camera at the building in front of the Academy office also has captured the images but they are of low resolution and the zoom images are not seen clearly.

Mangalore City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh has expressed confidence to nab all the culprits soon. “Three separate teams have been constituted under the leadership of three inspectors - Thilak Chandra, Vinay Gaunkar and Venkatesh Prasanna. They are also looking for a clue and are taking help of local shop keepers and residents”, he said.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Jagannath said that currently the probe was in progress in three different angles including religious and personal enmity.

Meanwhile, medical sources have said that Mr Uchil, who sustained severe injuries on neck, chest, hands and other parts of the body, was out of danger. “Though he is still in the intensive care unit, now he can speak” said a doctor.

According to Mr Uchil's wife Shahina it was God's grace that his life was saved. “I am a bit relieved now. I visited him in the morning and feel a lot better,” she said.

“He had received a threat call a month back. But I had not heard of any such things ever since. He generally would not speak about such things with me,” she said.

“He had a loud mouth. But he is not the person to take up a fight. He always helped people from our community. Our own people (Bearys) would come to him seeking some help or the other. We did not have many non-Muslim people coming to our place. But unfortunately, those people (Bearys) who sought his help talked ill of him from behind”, she said.

“He survived because he knew a trick or two to avoid such attacks. He must have used his arm as a shield when they came to slay his neck,” said a relative of him who was in the hospital.

Mr Uchil's marital life also saw some twists. Having married a second time there were many complaints against him. Recently there were rumours about a woman slapping him in Padubidri. But, he had denied the rumours, saying that it was a political conspiracy against him.

He was working as an Anchor in one of the local channels in the city. Mr Uchil was actively involved in BJP. He had struggled hard for the presidential post of the Beary Academy. Moreover, some of his recent statements following the Hindu Samajotsava in Uppinagady had sparked controversy.