By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
Bhopal: Thirty-three-year-old youth Amjad Khan, the ex-Lance Nayak in the Indian Army and Kargil war warrior, who was branded as “dacoit” by the personnel of Madhya Pradesh Police and gunned down in an alleged fake encounter on the intervening night of August 21-22 along with three others, was in fact a pro-active youth Congress leader of Bhind and Gwalior regions of the state. After having put in 11 years of service in the Army he sought voluntary retirement he was working as secretary of Bhind District Youth Congress .
Police claimed to have killed n fake encounter four youth dubbing them as “dacoits”. Those killed in last Sunday’s encounter included: Raju Banjara, Amjad Khan, Ravindra Ujenia and Udal Badahi.
Amjad Khan wife Yasmeen (right) and Udal Badhai wife Rani (left) weeping at the Press conference while narrating their tragedy to newspersons in Bhopal
The Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee, (MPCC), vice president Dr. Govind Singh & Congress Deputy Leader of Opposition in the state Vidhan Sabha Choudhary Rakesh Singh addressing a joint Press conference here have demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation, (CBI), probe into the matter. If the state Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan fails to concede their demand in the interest of justice then they would knock the doors of court of law and also launch a people’s campaign to pressure the government to heed to the request.
The MPCC submitted a memorandum to the state Governor Rameshwar Thakur urging him to direct the state government to order CBI investigations into the so-called “encounter” and register murder cases against the police officials involved in this heinous crime. Furthermore the state government must make security arrangements for the family members of the deceased Amjad Khan, the memorandum also demanded.
The Governor reportedly has sought a report on the said fake encounter from the Madhya Pradesh Director General of Police S. K. Raut following the submission of the memorandum by MPCC. The wife, father and uncle of Amjad and wife, child and father of another victim Udal Badahi were specially brought by MPCC from Bhind met the Governor who in their presence telephonically ordered to submit a written report at the earliest. The family members of the deceased were also present at the Press conference.
Dr. Govind Singh, who is a former minister, described the episode not just a fake encounter but the biggest “manslaughter” of Bhind district since India’s Independence. In the Bhind district there have been 15 police encounters in last two years of which about half-a-dozen have been fake, he claimed. The fake encounters are committed by the police to lap up laurels, medals and out of turn departmental promotions, he charged. He said minorities who are politically active are not safe in Madhya Pradesh.
He said many loopholes in the police version has exposed its claims. He pointed out that the residents of village Baknasa, having a population between 2500-3000, where on its outskirts the alleged fake encounter took place heard only three to four rounds of firing while the police claimed that 72 rounds were fired in the encounter.
Dr. Govind revealed that the police party led by Bhind’s Superintendent of Police, (SP), Chanchal Shekhar which claimed the “honours of the encounter” were nailed down by the villagers. The villagers questioned that the boots of the police party were not soiled at all with the soggy black cotton soil as loads of black soil was not sticking to it. The boots of all the members of police party as well as the new shoes tucked in the feet of the killed “bandits” were clean as ever. The SP was non-plussed at this and immediately ordered the suspension of video-graphing of the “after the encounter scene” and made a hasty retreat.
Another lie that has been nailed is about the arms recovered from the “Bandits”. The police claimed that first these “bandits” fired and then police party fired in self-defence. The said arms recovered were so much of condemned and poor quality that on the basis of this any Tom, Dick and Harry can say that none can engage in encounters with such weapons.
It may be pointed out here that the police had made the four youth to put on the dresses of Army and police force to make them appear masquerading as dacoits and then shot them in cold blood. Two of the killed youth were made to put on the Army’s camouflaged dresses while the other two had police uniforms on them which were not of their body sizes. One of the youth was made to wear a very loose pair of trousers which was tightened with the help of a belt below the waist to hold on to the body.
Dr. Govind asserted that late Amjad Khan was very active politically and socially and claimed he had documentary proof of the same. The deceased was resident of Daboh Kasba of Bhind district and it was a respectable family of the area. He said Amjad along with his wife Yasmeen Khan, who is Lahar block president of women Congress, was pro-active which often exposed the wrong-doings of the police and others in the area and at times police was at the receiving ends and was seen in bad light. This probably antagonized the police and it was on the look out to eliminate him, Govind quoting Amjad’s family members said.
The police officials Surendra Singh Sikarwar, the then Daboh police station in-charge, and Kamta Prasad Sharma, Asstt. Sub-Inspector, were the two main persons who wanted to settle scores with Amjad. They had publicly declared to teach Amjad a lesson as a result of which he would forget to dabble with politics. As such he was framed in July 5, 2010 kidnapping case of two scrape-dealer brothers Pradeep Gupta and Hareesh Gupta in Gwalior town of the state. The dealers were set free the same day after Amjad allegedly extorted a ransom of Rs. 11 lakh. However, Amjad was picked up from his home in a deceptive manner.
It may be mentioned here that a vernacular daily “Parivar Today” of Gwalior had in its August 13, 2010 edition had expressed apprehensions over the police intention of organizing a fake encounter following the alleged kidnapping of the two scrape-dealers. And this has come very much true.
It is interesting to note here that as if the kidnapped dealers knew that their tormentors will be gunned down that fateful night and they would have to rush to identify their bodies. The police also knew in advance that the bandits to be shot down were kidnappers of the scrape-dealers. As such in the wee hours of August 22 the two dealer siblings and their father rushed to the spot and identified the killed “bandits”. What a coincidence! “What a perfect planning”.
Meanwhile, Choudhary Rakesh Singh charged that Madhya Pradesh Police has become impotent and is unable to control law and order situation in the state. He alleged that cases of encounter have gone up in the Chambal area of the state and that encounters are staged to garner medals and out of turn promotions together with to divert people’s attention.
Singh training his gun against the state Home Minister Umashankar Gupta said the minister is proving totally inefficient to streamline the police force and control law and order in the state. As such the Home Minister has no right to stick to his post and should resign forthwith. ([email protected])