Lucknow: A 35-year-old man from Mumbai who came to attend a wedding reception of his nephew at Jalalabad in UP’s Shahjahanpur was allegedly shot dead over a “heated argument” on Wednesday night. Nihal Khan, who was shot in the neck, was the brother-in-law of fugitive-don Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Iqbal Kaskar and used to live in Byculla, sources in his family said on Thursday.
Nihal’s sister Rizwana Hasan is married to Kaskar, added one of his family members, requesting anonymity. Kaskar is currently lodged in Taloja Central Jail in an alleged extortion case dating back to 2018. Nihal was also the brother-in-law of Jalalabad town’s chairman Shakeel Khan. In 2016, Nihal had purportedly eloped with Shakeel’s niece — she was found 15 days later. The matter was settled in a “compromise” and no legal action was initiated.
“Nihal had missed his flight on Feb 15 and came here by road. It seems my brother Kamil was still upset with Nihal over the 2016 episode and wanted to take revenge. He was carrying his gun with him after coming to know that Nihal was here to attend my son’s reception. I think Kamil was waiting for an opportunity after the wedding and shot him dead on the fourth day of the ceremony. This incident could’ve been averted if we knew about his intention,” said Shakeel.
A police officer, investigating the matter, said, “On Wednesday night, Nihal had a verbal argument with Kamil who then took out his licenced rifle and shot him dead in front of guests. The accused then fled the venue.”
SSP (Shahjahanpur) Ashok Kumar Meena said an FIR under IPC section 302 (murder) against Kamil Khan on the complaint of Nihal’s wife Rukhsar. The body has been sent for autopsy. Case is being investigated from all angles and the accused will be arrested soon.”
