UP school teacher shot dead for ‘promoting love jihad’, accused surrenders

A 43-year-old government primary school teacher was allegedly shot dead near his school in Uttar Pradesh's Bijnor district Tuesday by a farmer who accused him of promoting "love jihad". The victim, Naushad Ahmed, posted at a primary school in the Purushottampur village, was on his way home from school in the afternoon when the alleged attack occurred.

A police team rushed to the scene and recovered Ahmed's body, which bore bullet injuries. The police said the assailant had been lying in wait for the teacher and opened fire as soon as he arrived, before fleeing on a motorcycle.

Ahmed was rushed to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Following the shooting, the accused, identified as Gaurav Chaudhary, 32, a farmer belonging to the Jat community and a resident of Puranpur Garhi village, surrendered at the Nazibabad police station.

He also handed over a country-made pistol allegedly used in the crime. "Gaurav has been taken into custody and will be produced before the court," said Krishna Kumar, Superintendent of Police, Bijnor. A police officer said that after surrendering, Gaurav claimed the motive behind the murder was his belief that the teacher was actively promoting "love jihad".

During the preliminary inquiry, the police found out that the murder may have resulted from a personal dispute days ago. Gaurav's family shared a close relationship with a local Dalit family. After discovering that a girl from the Dalit family was in a relationship and was seen roaming with a local Muslim youth, Gaurav allegedly informed both families.

Consequently, family members from both sides allegedly thrashed and warned the couple. The youth reported the matter to Ahmed, the police said. Four days before the shooting, Ahmed allegedly confronted Gaurav in the market and slapped him in public, angering him.