Who paid Jamia shooter, asks Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday questioned who "paid" the Jamia shooter, a day after a youth opened fire at a group of anti-CAA protesters in the area.

Asked by reporters to comment on the incident as he was entering Parliament, Gandhi said: "Who paid the Jamia shooter?"

On Thursday, Gandhi had tweeted a quote from Mahatma Gandhi: "I cannot teach you violence, as I do not believe in it. I can only teach you not to bow your heads before anyone, even at the cost of your life."

Meanwhile, the police on Friday said the youth, who fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters, was sent to 14-day protective custody by the Juvenile Justice Board on January 31.

The shooter was presented before the Board in the afternoon, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rajesh Deo said.

The police maintained that they have also urged the Board to form a medical panel to conduct a bone ossification test that will verify the age of the youth. The Crime Branch is probing the case.

Moreover, questions are also being raised on the swiftness with which the marksheet of the "shooter" was made available to the media claiming that he is a juvenile.

"Look at the strategy, how a juvenile was planted at Jamia who opened fire and then the marksheet was floated to media outlets to prove him a minor," said a protesting students at Jamia Millia Islamia.

The Delhi Police refrained from naming the accused since the time he was detained and called him 'apprehended' — a term used for juveniles.

Tensions in the Jamia area spiraled on Thursday after a man fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters, injuring a student, before walking away while waving the firearm above his head and shouting "Yeh Lo Aazadi" amid heavy police presence.

Questions are also being raised about how his Facebook profile was deactivated after his detention by the police.

The incident comes against the backdrop of hate speeches made during the campaign for the February 8 Delhi election; Union minister Anurag Thakur has been banned from campaigning for 72 hours after he was caught on camera encouraging the slogan "Desh Ke Gaddaro Ko, Goli Maaro S****n Ko (Shoot the traitors)" at a rally.