Love Jihad in India
Rajasthan man kills Muslim labourer with axe and sets his body on fire while on camera Twitter videograb

A disturbing video that has gone viral in India shows a man from Rajasthan state hacking a Muslim migrant labour to death with an axe and then setting his body on fire.

The accused, identified as Shambhu Lal Regar, is heard warning Islamist jihadists in the video to stay away from India. He also said that he would not hesitate to kill more jihadists in future, arguing that the murder was to save his country and its women from them.

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In the video (Graphic content), the victim, identified as Afrazul from the eastern state of West Bengal, can be heard pleading for help as Regar stabs him repeatedly with an axe.

When the migrant worker became silent, the accused — believed to be aged between 35 and 40 — set him on fire.

After brutally killing the man, Regar is heard saying, "Those who support or are part of this 'Love Jihad' will be met with the same fate," referring to a term derived and widely used by Indian right-wing Hindu groups.

The groups call it an Islamist conspiracy when Muslim men and boys force girls belonging to non-Muslim communities to convert to Islam by professing love and promising marriage.

However, it was not clear immediately in this incident if the victim was in a relationship or had married a non-Muslim woman. Police are also yet to ascertain if the victim was known to the accused killer.

Meanwhile, a half-burnt body of a man was found on Thursday (7 December) morning near a road in Rajasthan's Rajsamand district and police suspect it could be of Afrazul's.

The state police confirmed that they have arrested Regar and have registered a case of murder and tampering with evidence under sections 302 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code.

"Prima facie, it appears that Regar killed the man and the man was dead when he set the body on fire," Rajsamand superintendent of police, Manoj Kumar, told the Hindustan Times.

Internet services in the Rajsamand district were suspended to stop circulation of the horrific video, fearing a communal clash. Police said that they have tightened security measures in the district to avoid any backlash.

Expressing his concerns over the incident, Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria, said, "It is shocking how he killed the man and made a video of it.

"The accused has been arrested and a special investigation team (SIT) has been set up...Any person will be disturbed by the video."

It was not immediately clear who shot the video, but an investigation was underway.

IBTimes UK could not independently verify the contents of the video.