Rajeev Mishra and Bhupinder Singh, both allegedly associated with the Bajrang Dal, were killed while manufacturing hand grenades in a house in Kanpur. The police had recovered a large quantity of explosive material from the spot.

“The blast occurred on Janmashtami and major festivals like Ramzan, Diwali and Id are also approaching. The explosives recovered from the site could have been used to disturb the Hindu-Muslim unity,” Maulana told The Indian Express.

“A ban should be imposed on the Bajrang Dal on the lines of SIMI,” he added.

 He criticised the state government for not effectively handling the Kanpur blast case. “Why was the case not lodged under the laws that deal with terrorism?” he asked. He demanded judicial probe into all the arrests made in connection with the terror activities during the last five years.

Senior Superintendent of Police Ashok Kumar Singh claimed that the police had lodged an FIR in the case. The Kalyanpur police station records, however, showed that the FIR was lodged by a student, Sandeep Soni, who stayed in the house.

Soni said he lodged the FIR against Rajeev Mishra and an unidentified person, named as Sardarji, under police pressure.  

A visibly scared Soni said, “I hope I do not land up in a mess. I had informed the police about the incident on telephone. Therefore, the police told me that I have to register a complaint.”