Saif Ali Khan Attacker's Lawyers Dissect Mumbai Police Theory On Stabbing Incident And Arrest | 5 Points

Saif Ali Khan was repeatedly stabbed by a knife-wielding intruder inside his 12th-floor apartment in upscale Bandra in the early hours of January 16. Subsequently, he was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital, where he underwent two surgeries following stab injuries, including on his neck and near the spine. He was discharged from the private hospital on January 21.

Meanwhile, Shareeful Islam Shehzad Mohammad Rohilla Amin Fakir (30), a Bangladeshi national, allegedly the suspect in the stabbing case, has been remanded into police custody till January 29. Speculations continue to swirl over the stabbing incident, with many raising questions over the arrested accused and Saif's 'quick recovery'. In a court hearing on January 24, Fakir's counsels Dinesh Prajapati and Sandeep Sherkahne, opposed the police's plea and raised doubt over the credibility of the incident.

Who is the person in the CCTV footage?

The CCTV footage recovered from Saif Ali Khan's Satguru Sharan's building showed a man on the 6th floor of the building. He is believed to be the attacker. However, there is doubt over whether the man arrested by the police is the man caught on camera. During the court hearing on Friday, Mumbai police informed Judicial magistrate KC Rajput that it has to conduct facial recognition of the Bangladeshi man, arrested for allegedly stabbing Saif Ali Khan last week, to ascertain if he was the person seen in the CCTV footage from the actor's building in Bandra. This submission is itself alarming.

Son being framed: Accused's father alleges

Mohammad Ruhul, the father of Shareeful Islam Shehzad Mohammad Rohilla Amin Fakir, has alleged that the man seen in the CCTV camera footage in the Satguru Sharan building believed to have attacked Saif Ali Khan was not his son. He added that his son was being framed. Ruhul told PTI that he will soon approach Bangladesh's foreign ministry and the Indian High Commission for the release of his son.

No need for the accused to be in custody, say lawyers

The police told the court that it also needs to match Fakir's footprints to the ones found at Saif Ali Khan's residence and that the shoes the former wore at the time of the attack have not been recovered yet. Fakir's counsels said the remand of the accused was not required to recover the material, as mentioned by the police. They also said that the "matter is hyped".

Did cops reach out to the accused's family?

As per Mumbai Police, a team reached out to Fakir's family in Bangladesh to obtain his documents as per the standard procedure. However, Fakir's father has denied this claim in an interview with Republic. He claimed that he learned about his son's arrest through Facebook and news channels and added he had not been contacted by police in this connection.

The same was reiterated by Fakir's lawyers in court who claimed that the due process was not followed. As per the law, after the arrest, the relative of the concerned guardian is to be informed and in this case, it was not done. "I had a talk with the accused. He is very nervous," Fakir's lawyers said in court on Friday.

Why did Saif or family members not call the cops?

Fakir's lawyers also questioned in court why did the Khan family not inform the cops or the security guards about the stabbing and break-in incident. 

They opposed the police's plea to secure Fakir's custody and raised doubt over the credibility of the incident. They argued that the alleged victim (Saif) had enough time but did not call the police for help. According to the statement of Jeh Ali Khan's nanny Eliyama Philip and Kareena Kapoor, all family members including 5 house staffers were present at home at the time of the attack.