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Saif Ali Khan attack: A 31-year-old man, Akash Kailash Kanojia lost his job after the Mumbai Police misidentified him as Saif Ali Khan's attacker. The Colaba resident's wedding was also called off because of a wrong alert sent by the Mumbai police, reported Hindustan Times.
“The police failed to notice a simple thing – that I have moustache, while the person captured in CCTV cameras installed in Saif Ali Khan’s building did not have one. Yet. I had to go through this ordeal,” Kanojia told HT.
The Mumbai police had alerted the Railway Police Forces (RPF) that Kanojia was responsible for the attack on Saif Ali Khan, which happened at the Bollywood actor's Bandra apartment on January 16. Kanojia was travelling from Mumbai to Bilaspur by Jnaneswar Express on January 17 to meet his prospective bride when he was detained by railway protection force (RPF) officers at Durg railway station, reported Hindustan Times.
“The RPF personnel not only apprehended me, they also issued a press release with my photograph, which was shown widely by television channels and media outlets. As a result, the bride’s family cancelled the meeting with me and my employer terminated my services,” Kanojia told HT.
After being held, Kanojia was also told by the Mumbai Police that he would be brought back to the city for further investigation.
According to HT, Kanojia had told the Mumbai Police that he had nothing to do with Saif Ali Khan's attack, but in vain. He had even begged the officials to check the CCTV footage of his house, but the police tuned a deaf ear to Kanojia's requests and circulated the photos.
On January 18, the Mumbai police finally arrested Shariful Islam Shehzad, an alleged Bangladeshi national, in Thane, claiming he was the person who had broken into the actor’s residence with the intent to commit a robbery.
The next morning, police officials released Kanojia, informing him that he was free to go, reported HT.
Kanojia used to work as a driver with a tour company which works with Western Railway in Mumbai. The 31-year-old has also been accused in a drug-related case and a theft case. “I hope the courts will eventually clear me of all the charges,” Kanojia told HT.
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