Bulandshahr violence: UP cop died due to bullet injury, not stone pelting; Yogi Adityanath announces Rs 50 lakh compensation

Lucknow: Subodh Kumar Singh, an inspector with the Uttar Pradesh Police posted in Bulandshahr, was shot dead by an unknown person when a mob turned violent in an alleged case of illegal slaughtering of cow on Monday morning near Chingrawati village, under Syana police station limits. Singh was the station house officer (SHO) at Syana Police Station. The autopsy report of the slain SHO revealed that he was hit with a .32 bore bullet near his left eyebrow. Bulandshahr district magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha, said, “In the post mortem, gunshot injury has been confirmed to Late inspector Subodh Kumar Singh. Bullet entered near left eyebrow and is inside skull.” Singh was the SHO of Bisada Village in Dadri, infamous for the lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq over cow-related violence. He was the officer investigating Akhlaq’s killing from 28 September, 2015 to 9 November, 2015, while the charge sheet in this case was filed by a different investigating officer in March, 2016. Singh was later transferred to Varanasi. Two FIRs have been lodged, according to reports — one FIR has been filed against the alleged cattle slaughter and the other against the protests that took place on Monday. Here is the main FIR against 27 for inciting violence. Mob fury over cow carcass Earlier on Monday, reports from Bulandshahr said that Subodh was killed when he was hit with a stone by the outraged mob after they found bovine carcass in the farms near Chingrawati village, under the Syana Police Station limits. Apart from the cop, a youth named Sumit was also killed in the violence. He was about 20 years old and was allegedly killed in police firing. [caption id=“attachment_5665561” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Police at the site of violence on Monday. PTI[/caption] Uttar Pradesh additional director-general (ADG) Anand Kumar, in Lucknow, said that apart from the bullet injury, the postmortem report also revealed many other injury marks from hard and blunt objects on Singh’s body. “A special investigative team (SIT) has also been formed and inspector-general (IG) range from Meerut will probe into the entire gamut of issues about the incident,” the ADG police told media. The Opposition in Uttar Pradesh criticised the incident targeting the ruling BJP government. Samajwadi Party spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi, while rebuking the condition of law and order, said that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath “has no time for governance in the state”. “He(Adityanath) is busy in election campaigning in other states, neglecting the responsibilities for which he has taken constitutional oath. Samajwadi Party wants government to concentrate on basic issues of governance and development.” Stones, and bullets flying around Driver of the slain inspector, Ramashraya, said that the SHO was lying near a boundary wall from where he pulled him into the police vehicle, but the villagers attacked them throwing stones and shouting ‘maaro maaro’ (hit him). “As everyone started to flee, I too fled from the spot,” he said, adding that gunshots were being fired at the spot and the SHO was already hurt and he was trying to take him to the hospital. Adityanath has ordered ADG (intelligence) SB Siradkar to probe the case and present the report within two days. He also expressed his condolence on the death of the police officer. The Uttar Pradesh Police said on Twitter, “Inspector Subodh Kumar Singh sacrificed his life to uphold law and order in the district. With his demise, we have lost one of our finest officers who will always be alive in our hearts as a hero”. The trouble in Syana started after villagers found some body parts of cow and its progeny in a jungle, the ADG said. Angry villagers and members of various Hindu groups brought the animal remains in tractor-trolley to the Chingarwathi police post and demanded action against the culprits. They raised slogans against the police administration and blocked the Bulandshahr-Garh highway. District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said police and senior officials tried to reason with the protesters but they refused to budge. As Sub-divisional Magistrate Avinash Kumar Maurya arrived on the scene, protesters turned violent, pelting stones on policemen and indulging in arson. Jha said the police had to open fire in self-defence. Meerut divisional commissioner Aneeta C Meshram went to the scene of violence to take stock of the situation. Jha said the situation in Syana is “under control but tensed”. Adityanath late on Monday announced a compensation of Rs 50 lakh for the kin of Singh. With inputs from Varun Sharma Authors are freelance writers and members of 101Reporters.com