Anil Shirole, the newly-elected BJP MP from Pune, left his party leaders red-faced by justifying the murderous assault on a techie four days ago by members of a radical Hindu outfit, reports NDTV.

"The people of Pune want peace. What was posted on Facebook was sad. It was bound to have some repercussions," Shirole told reporters. He, however, took care to qualify his remarks by saying, "This was not right."

A 28-year-old software professional was bludgeoned to death allegedly by persons with suspected links to a Hindu outfit near Pune. The murder of Shaikh Mohasin Sadiq, who hailed from Solapur and who was a resident of Hadapsar, sparked tension in the area.

The trigger for the attack was apparently uploading of derogatory pictures of warrior king Shivaji and late Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on Facebook, which led to a protest bandh on Sunday.

Four more persons suspected of having links with the Hindu outfit were arrested today taking the total number of arrests to 17.

Pic: Pune techie Shaikh Mohasin Sadiq was targetted because he was wearing a skull cap and had a beard, said the police.