3 cops suspended after Bishnoi gang shooter in custody speaks to reporters on Baba Siddique
Mathura (UP), Oct 19: Three policemen have been suspended for alleged negligence in duty, taking cognisance of videos in which a sharpshooter of Lawrence Bishnoi gang interacts with reporters while in police custody and comments on NCP leader Baba Siddique's killing, officials said on Saturday.
In the purported videos that went viral on social media, Yogesh (26) alias Raju said Siddique, who was killed in Mumbai recently, was not a good man and had connections with India's most-wanted criminal Dawood Ibrahim.
Taking action in the matter, Mathura Senior Superintendent of Police Shailesh Kumar Pandey on Friday night ordered the suspension of three policemen, including a sub-inspector, the officials said.
According to the officials, Yogesh is associated with the Lawrence Bishnoi-Hashim Baba gangs. He has been arrested in connection with last month's killing of gym owner Nadir Shah in Delhi's Greater Kailash area.
They, however, said Yogesh is not linked with the killing of Baba Siddique, a former Maharashtra minister, on October 12. Siddique was shot dead outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique's office in Mumbai's upscale Bandra area.
Yogesh was arrested on Thursday morning after he suffered injuries in an encounter with a joint team of the Delhi Police's Special Cell and the Mathura Police. The police seized a .32-bore pistol, ammunition and a motorcycle from his possession.
After being shot in the leg, Raju was taken to the district hospital, where he made statements about Siddique while speaking to reporters on Thursday.
While being transferred from the district hospital to the district jail, Raju made additional statements on camera to some mediapersons. Several videos of his comments went viral on social media, and the incident was also covered by news channels and newspapers.
SP (City) Arvind Kumar said the police took action following Yogesh's media statements. SSP Shailesh Kumar Pandey suspended Sub-Inspector Ramsanehi, Head Constable Vipin Kumar, and Constable Sanjay Kumar for negligence in security of the accused, he said.
An inquiry has been initiated, and a deputy superintendent of police has been directed to investigate and submit a report, Kumar added.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Yogesh had said, "Baba Siddique was killed because he was not a good man. There were charges against him under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). It is said that he was associated with Dawood, the man behind the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. When people get involved with such individuals, something is bound to happen. This is exactly what happened to Siddique."
Talking about criminals gathering information before committing a crime, he said, "These days we have mobile phones, the internet, Google and so on. We can find out a lot about a person through these means."
Regarding the murder case in Delhi, Yogesh claimed that he had no direct contact with anyone. "It was only through my friends from Delhi that we communicated," he said.
"We are given direct targets. Anyone who gets in the way and does something wrong will face consequences," he added.
VIDEO | "Baba Siddique was killed because he was not a good man. There were charges against him under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). It is said that he was associated with Dawood, the man behind the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts," said Yogesh alias Raju, who is… pic.twitter.com/FNkJAAfsNO
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 18, 2024
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Accused in journalist Gauri Lankesh murder case joins Shinde-led Sena in Jalna
Jalna, Oct 19: Shrikant Pangarkar, an accused in the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, which outraged the nation, joined Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena in Jalna ahead of assembly polls.
Lankesh was shot dead outside her home in Karnataka capital Bengaluru on September 5, 2017.
A probe by police in Karnataka with assistance from agencies in Maharashtra led to the arrest of several persons.
Pangarkar, a Jalna municipal councillor of the undivided Shiv Sena between 2001and 2006, was arrested in August 2018 and was granted bail by the Karnataka High Court on September 4 this year.
After he was denied a ticket by the Shiv Sena in 2011, Pangarkar joined the right-wing Hindu Janjagruti Samiti.
He joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena on Friday in the presence of party leader and former state minister Arjun Khotkar.
"Pangarkar is a former Shiv Sainik and has returned to the party. He has been nominated as the chief of the Jalna assembly poll campaign," Khotkar told reporters.
Khotkar also said he wants to contest the assembly poll from Jalna, but added seat sharing discussions in the Mahayuti (ruling alliance comprising Shiv Sena, BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP) were still underway.
The seat is held by Congress' Kailash Gorantyal.
Maharashtra assembly polls will be held on November 20, while results will be declared on November 23. The term of the current assembly ends on November 26.
