Lokesh Singla was part of the cow vigilante group, led by Bajrang Dal leader Monu Manesar, which allegedly abducted and murdered brothers Nasir (25) and Junaid (35) on February 16, 2023
NEW DELHI — The law of retribution has finally caught up with an accused in the 2023 Nasir-Junaid murder case.
Harassed by his alleged Bajrang Dal partners in crime, cow vigilante Lokesh Singla committed suicide by throwing himself in front of a running train in Palwal, Haryana.
Before his death, Singla recorded a video naming four members of the Hindutva outfit Bajrang Dal – Hakim Singh, Bharat Bhushan (state convenor of Bajrang Dal from Hathin), Anil Kaushik Yadav, and Harkesh Yadav – who, he said, threatened to frame him in a false case, reports reaching here said on Wednesday.
In the video recorded before the suicide, Singla said that he was constantly receiving threats and attempts were being made to implicate him in false cases. In the video, he said, “These people are threatening me. They sent goons after me and said that I would be implicated in a false case.”
The video has gone viral on social media.
Damyanti, the widow of the deceased, has filed a case of abetment to suicide in the Faridabad GRP (Government Railway Police). In the complaint, she said that the named individuals had been harassing her husband for a long time. Damyanti also said that her husband was active as a social worker in Bichhor village of Nuh district. Police have registered a case against the accused and started an investigation.
Brothers Nasir (25) and Junaid (35) were abducted on suspicion of cow smuggling and burnt to death by a group of cow vigilantes led by Bajrang Dal leader Monu Yadav alias Monu Manesar on February 16, 2023. The charred bodies of the two brothers were found inside a burnt car on the Rajasthan–Haryana border near Bhiwani District. The case sparked national outrage and after widespread shock and condemnation, the main accused, Monu Manesar, was arrested.
The deaths of Junaid and Nasir left a void in their families. In 2024, unable to bear the loss of her father, Junaid’s 14-year-old daughter Parwana passed away. She died of a heart attack at the hospital.
“It was the grief… Parwan could hardly speak, and her health had started deteriorating after her father’s death,” said Ismail, Junaid’s cousin.
“Parwana often asked us these questions: What had my father done? Why was he killed? When will he come back home? But we didn’t have any answers,” Ismail was quoted by The Print as saying.
