Udaipur Files: What Is The Shocking Kanhaiya Lal Murder Case That Inspired Vijay Raaz Starrer?

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to urgently list a plea challenging screening of the movie Udaipur Files: Kanhaiya Lal Tailor Murder, and said, "Let the film be released." The movie's trailer was released on July 4, prompting a plea by one of the accused in the murder case, Mohammed Javed, who is facing trial. He sought a stay on the film's release till the trial in the case, claiming the film's exhibition nationwide will violate the accused's right to fair trial.

However, the movie has been cleared for release by the SC. Here's what the movie is based on.

The horrifying tale of murder of Kanhaiya Lal

According to the makers, Udaipur Files: Kanhaiya Lal Tailor Murder is a hard-hitting film based on the horrifying real-life incident of the brutal daylight murder of Kanhaiya Lal Sahu in Udaipur. This film dives deep into the events, the silence, the outrage and the battle for justice.

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The movie was earlier titled Gyanvapi Files: A Tailor’s Murder Story. The murder Kanhaiya Lal Sahu, 40, in 2022 rocked Udaipur as well as the rest of India. Kanhaiya Lal was hacked to death at his tailoring shop in the busy Hathipole area of Udaipur on June 28, 2022 by two cleaver-wielding men for allegedly supporting a social media post against Islam, an incident that sent shockwaves across the country.

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An even more shocking aspect to this was that the two accused, Mohammad Riaz Attari and Ghaus Mohammad, posted a video online, claiming the heinous crime and threatened Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The same day, they were arrested by the police.

What happened on the fateful day of Kanhaiya Lal's murder?

The accused entered Kanhaiya Lal's shop on the pretense of getting clothes stitched. However, they attacked him with a sharp knife and subsequently slit his throat.

Kanhaiya had complained of threat to his life

As per the media reports, after making a remark in support of suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma, who made controversial comments about Prophet Muhammad, Kanhaiya Lal was arrested by the Udaipur Police. However, he was released on bail. But he started receiving death threats.

Kanhaiya registered a complaint and urged the police to provide him security. However, his relatives alleged that no action was taken. In a shocking turn of events, he was beheaded on June 28, and a video of the same was circulated online. It stirred tension among the local shopkeepers. They shut down their shops and stopped the police from taking away Kanhaiya's body, asking the officials to arrest the murderers.

Three years on, Kanhaiya Lal's family awaits justice

Following Kanhaiya Lal's murder, nine key accused were produced before a special court in Jaipur. 

Two other accused were traced to Karachi, Pakistan, and are currently absconding. Photographs, CCTV footage and pen drives obtained from the accused were submitted as evidence in the court. The NIA continues its investigation, but no punishment has been awarded to the main accused so far.