Unable to nab the main culprits in the Bulandshahr mob violence case even after almost two weeks, the Uttar Pradesh police have sought help from public asking them to identify the accused on the basis of posters released by them.
The list contains 23 names, 18 of whom have been identified by photographs. Bajrang Dal Bulandshahr convener Yogesh Raj and local BJP Yuva Morcha president Shikhar Agarwal are on the list, at number one and six. Police said they would put up the posters at public places in Bulandshahr, assuring locals who provide information that their identify will be kept secret.
Superintendent of Police Bulandshahr City, Atul Srivastava, said the photographs were released on the basis of CCTV footage and video clips. “And those who were not identified, we have released their photos and asked people to identify them and inform us,” said the officer.
Under pressure to nab the culprits, the police have also initiated steps to attach the property of the accused and stuck notices outside their homes.
The action comes after non-bailable warrants were issued against 27 absconding accused on Wednesday. In their application, the investigators argued that the accused though on the run were “trying to disrupt communal harmony by making videos of the incident viral and attempting to influence evidence.”
TV interview
While both Yogesh Raj and Shikhar Agarwal released video messages soon after being named in the FIR, Agarwal also appeared on a Hindi television channel in a full-fledged interview as recent as December 9, embarrassing the police.
“We are trying to find the link of the videos,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police Raghvendra Mishra.
The police also had to face embarrassment after they released a wrong photo for one of the accused, Vishal Tyagi. The officer told The Hindu that while there was an accused by the name, the photograph published was of somebody else. “We are correcting it,” he said.
17 held so far
The police have so far arrested 17 persons in the case. Saurabh Payal, a 26-year-old resident of Khad Mohanagar village, was picked up by a team of the Special Task Force near Bugrasi Road in Bulandshahr on Wednesday. On Saturday, four more accused — Amit Singh Jat, Ashish Kumar, Hemu Singh Gurjar and Ankur Jat — were arrested.
The arrested also include Jeetu Fauji or Jitendra Malik, an Army jawan who emerged as a key suspect in the murder of officer Subodh Singh. Jeetu Fauji is currently under judicial custody.
When Senior Superintendent of Police Bulandshahr Prabhakar Chaudhary was asked why the remaining accused were yet to be nabbed, he said legal proceedings were on. “If they were here, we would have arrested them. They are absconding,” he said.
More than 70 persons, with some of them allegedly having links to the VHP and its youth wing Bajrang Dal, were booked on charges of murder, attempt to murder, rioting, sedition, damage to public property and dacoity, among others in the mob violence case which took place after allegations of cow slaughter in a village in Bulandshahr on December 3.