The Mumbai Police conducted an identification parade on Wednesday in the Saif Ali Khan attack case, where Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad, arrested last month, is accused of stabbing the actor during an attempted burglary at his Bandra residence. The parade took place at Arthur Road Jail, where Shehzad is currently in judicial remand. Saif Ali Khan’s house help and staff nurse arrived at the jail to identify the accused, as reported by news agency ANI. The entire process was done under the supervision of the tehsildar after being ordered by the court.
Officials stated that Shehzad, an illegal immigrant from Bangladesh, was positively identified by witnesses present during the incident. The police have strong evidence linking him to the crime, including CCTV footage and a successful facial recognition test. This follows a statement from additional commissioner of police Paramjit Singh Dahiya, who last month refuted rumors about the accused’s fingerprints not matching those found at the crime scene. “Whenever a suspect is arrested, multiple pieces of evidence are collected against them. We have found much oral, physical, and technical evidence against the accused. We have caught the right person,” he affirmed.
Saif Ali Khan, who was brutally stabbed multiple times during the early hours of January 16, was rushed to a nearby hospital with six stab wounds and underwent extensive surgery, including the removal of a knife piece near his spine. The suspect was apprehended from Thane on January 19. Shehzad’s father, a functionary of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), maintains his son’s innocence, claiming he is being framed. Additionally, concerns were raised regarding the suspect’s appearance not matching that recorded in the CCTV footage from the night of the attack. However, the identification parade may help quell those doubts.
Khan spent five days in treatment before being discharged, and the security of his residence has since been significantly increased, now overseen by a security firm owned by Ronit Roy.
