“Govt is doing right with Muslims,” Arshad after killing mother & four sisters, fearing harassment by co-religionists

Since the afternoon of January 1, a video of a man confessing to murders he committed in a hotel went viral on social media. A little research suggests that the video is from the Lucknow district of Uttar Pradesh, and the man featured in the clip is Arshad. In the video, Arshad admits to killing his mother and four sisters, fearing the local Muslim gangsters who, he claims, were encroaching on their land, harassing them, and planning to sell his sisters in Hyderabad.

Originally hailing from Agra, the family had travelled to Lucknow to celebrate the New Year. Their lifeless bodies were found in a room at Hotel Sharanjeet, located in the Naka area. The victims were identified as Asma, the mother, along with her daughters—Aliya (9), Aksa (16), Raheeman (18), and Alishiya (19).

During initial questioning, Arshad, the son, confessed to murdering his mother and sisters. He claimed that the family was being harassed by neighbours and expressed concerns for their safety if anything were to happen to him. Out of this fear, he stated, he decided to take their lives, according to DCP Central Zone Raveena Tyagi.

BIG | Five Found Dead in UP’s Lucknow Hotel; Arshad arrested

Lucknow police discovered the bodies of five individuals in a room at Hotel Sharan Jeet. DCP Central, Raveena Tyagi, stated, “The deceased include four women and one child. A 24-year-old man, identified as Arshad from… pic.twitter.com/hGax5A522o

— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) January 1, 2025 

Arshad recorded a video of the crime, which showed the bodies of his family members and detailed his motives. Before the incident, he had taken his family to Ajmer and then brought them back to Lucknow, where they checked into the hotel. During the night, he strangled his mother with a scarf and gagged her with a cloth. He employed the same method to kill his sisters, also slitting their wrists to ensure their deaths.

Arshad accuses people from his community of attempting to sell his sisters in Hyderabad. He claims Muslims wanted to capture his land. He blamed his people for this, as they have constantly been harassing him. Arshad expressed a desire to revert to the Sanatan fold but was troubled by his community.

In a video that has gone viral online, Arshad accused members of his community in Agra of driving him to commit the heinous act. He claimed to have been under immense pressure and said he acted to protect his family’s honor. Arshad alleged that, despite repeated pleas for assistance, neither local authorities nor community leaders stepped in to help, leaving the family with no choice but to live on the streets.

“Our community members are responsible for what I have done to myself and my sisters. I didn’t want them to be sold. We kept running from pillar to post seeking help but no one helped us. It has been 10 to 15 days now, we are helplessly wandering on the streets in the cold. I don’t want them to be on the streets in this cold. They took away our home even though its documents are with us,” Arshad said in the video.

#WATCH | #UPDATE | Mohammad Arshad, who brutally killed his four sisters and mother in Lucknow, released a video after the murders.

He claims he committed the act to protect them from being forced into prostitution by Muslim gangsters.

Arshad also accuses Islamists from his… https://t.co/b0VsxzUjd8 pic.twitter.com/08BOLBY3nY

— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) January 1, 2025 

“When you get this video, Lucknow Police, please don’t spare such Muslims. You are doing a splendid job against such Muslims. These people are involved in all sorts of criminal activities, trade in counterfeit notes, oppress people, grab lands of the helpless. We tried acting against them but couldn’t get success. Those living in our neighborhood are responsible for our deaths,” Arshad added.

Arshad’s father, Badar, reportedly assisted in the murders. After the killings, Arshad dropped Badar at a railway station and then reported the crime to the police. Based on his statement, authorities recovered the murder weapons, including a blade and a scarf. His father is currently on the run.