One of the main litigants in the Ayodhya land dispute case, Iqbal Ansari, was allegedly attacked on Tuesday at his home in Ayodhya by two people. Ansari was saved by his security personnel from the attackers, who he claimed had threatened to kill him if he did not withdraw his case, PTI reported.

“The woman introduced herself as Vartika Singh and claimed that she was an international shooter,” Ansari said. “They asked me to withdraw my claim from the dispute, threatening that she would otherwise shoot me.” The litigant claimed that he had not suffered any injuries in the attack.

Ansari said that the woman had also lashed out at him over triple talaq, after which he told her that the bill against it had been passed by the government. Following this, she threatened him over the Ayodhya land dispute case, The Times of India reported.

The litigant said that the woman had raised her voice as his family and neighbours gathered for the commotion that went on for around half an hour. Soon after, she attacked him but Ansari’s security guards intervened. “People in the neighbourhood said she had been roaming around the area since Monday as some recalled to have seen her yesterday,” Ansari was quoted as saying. “I don’t know who sent her or why she came here.”

Confirming the incident, Faizabad Superintendent of Police [City] Vijay Pal Singh said that the attackers had been detained, but were eventually released. On being asked if a first information report had been filed in the matter, Singh said: “I will let you know”.

The incident occurred on the day the Supreme Court issued a notice to two persons for allegedly threatening advocate Rajeev Dhavan for representing the Sunni Wakf Board in the Ayodhya land dispute case. In his petition last week, Dhavan said he had received a letter from retired education officer N Shanmugam on August 14, in which he threatened him for appearing for the Muslim parties in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute case. The advocate represents lead petitioner M Siddiq and the All India Sunni Waqf Board in the ongoing Ayodhya hearings.

Now, follow and debate the day’s most significant stories on Scroll Exchange.