On September 22, Bengaluru residents woke up to the shocking news of the brutal murder of a 26-year-old woman, whose body had been dismembered into 28 pieces and stuffed in a fridge. While the brutality of the crime dominated headlines, right-wing groups were quick to seize on reports suggesting that a Muslim man named Ashraf could be the suspect. However, it was later revealed that the accused was a man named Mukthirajan Pratap Roy, by which time influential right-wing handles had already spread anti-Muslim rhetoric. The murder was also compared to the Shraddha Walker murder case, where Aaftab Amin Poonawala was accused of murdering the 26-year-old woman.
Mahalakshmi’s body was discovered in an apartment complex in Vyalikaval near Veeranna Bhavan in Malleswaram on Saturday, September 21. Ashraf’s name first surfaced when Hemant Das, her estranged husband, told the media that he was suspicious of him. Das further said he had filed a complaint against Ashraf at the Nelamangala police station following which he was mandated not to enter Bengaluru. The police had not started this theory, but many media houses reported it based on the husband’s suspicion.
Almost immediately, right-wing influencers on social media started spreading misinformation and invoking terms such as land jihad– a bogey used to convey that Muslims force people to sell off their lands– and love jihad– a bogey used to convey Hindu women being forcibly converted to Islam. Ajeet Bharti, one such influencer, made Islamophobic comments against Journalist Arfa Khanum Sherwani’s social media post which said that newspapers, TV, and social media are filled with fake news vilifying the Muslim community.
“Ashraf broke Mahalakshmi into 52 pieces. Waqf's work is land jihad, after seeing videos of spitting and urinating, @myogiadityanath ji had to issue a new order. The whole of India is facing the terror of criminals on buses, trains and roads… Those who place cylinders, cement blocks and detonators on the railway tracks are your community brothers. The crowd shouting slogans of 'Sar Tan Se Juda' belongs to your community… Stop spreading rumours,” he said.
Kajal HINDUsthani, another influencer said, “The daughters who say that my Abdul is not like that are available in the fridge in 35 and 59 pieces.”
“Mahalaxmi left her husband for Ashraf only to be cut into 32 pieces. Those pieces were found rotting in a fridge while Ashraf is absconding. This is what happens when you actually believes in Bollywood movies (sic),” said Rishi Bagree, another influencer.
On September 26, all these unfounded allegations were dismissed after the police found the body of a Mukthirajan, who took his own life after confessing that he had killed Mahalakshmi. Mahalakshmi and Mukthirajan had known each other since 2023, both working in the same mall. Mahalakshmi, who was separated from her husband, held a position as a team leader at a costume outlet in a Malleshwaram mall. According to reports, he fled to Odisha and the suicide note said Mukthirajan killed Mahalakshmi on September 3 since he was “fed up with her conduct.”