Overview
- Hidayatullah Patel, 66, was stabbed outside Jama Masjid in Mohala, Akot, on Tuesday afternoon and died during treatment early Wednesday.
- CCTV footage led officers to identify Ubed Patel, 25, who was tracked by multiple teams and arrested in Panaj village that evening.
- During interrogation, the suspect initially alleged long-running family rivalry and a 2019 murder grievance, then told police he acted because Patel opposed his relationship with a woman.
- Akola police are verifying the new claim and say the knife was bought months earlier in Hyderabad, with forensic, narco, and digital probes underway under IPS officer Nikhil Patil.
- Supporters demanded swift arrests of all named in a complaint, Congress leaders criticized state law and order, and the case unfolds during a bruising local election season marked by other attacks.