Budaun (UP), 21 March

The brother of the main accused in the murder of a neighbour’s two children here surrendered at a police post in Bareilly, police said on Thursday. A video clip that surfaced online showed Javed, pleading with a group of people confronting him to take him to the police.

Javed, who had been absconding since the murders on Tuesday, surrendered at Satellite Police outpost of Baradari Police Station of Bareilly, Budaun Senior Superintendent of Police Alok Priyadarshi said. "Javed, the brother of main accused Sajid, was arrested by a police team in nearby Bareilly district. He is being brought to the district for further questioning," the SSP said.

In the video, Javed says that he fled to Delhi after the incident and returned to Bareilly to surrender before the police. The video was apparently shot at an autorickshaw stand close to the police post. "I have nothing to do with the incident. He (Sajid) was my elder brother. He did that but I have nothing to do with the incident," Javed is heard saying.

Sajid, who had recently opened a barber shop in the locality entered the house of a family known to him on Tuesday and allegedly attacked Ayush (12), Ahaan alias Honey (8) and Yuvraj (10) with a knife. Ayush and Ahaan died, while Yuvraj was admitted to the hospital in a critical condition.

Hours after the murder, Sajid was gunned down in an encounter with the police. Javed fled and remained absconding until his arrest on Thursday. Police have registered a case against both Sajid and Javed under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code.

The district administration has also ordered a magisterial inquiry into Sajid’s police encounter. "The report on the encounter has to be submitted in 15 days," Badaun District Magistrate Manoj Kumar said.

Late on Wednesday evening, the police had announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for Javed’s arrest. The children’s father, Vinod Kumar, praised the police for Javed’s arrest and called for strict punishment against him. "He should be questioned about the incident and asked who were involved with him because this incident is not of a single person,” Kumar told PTI Videos. “He is equally involved in the crime. They can cut anyone's neck. Strictest action should be taken against him. He must be ‘encountered’ or given capital punishment," he said.