Bahraich violence: 5 suspects held after encounter with UP cops, 2 suffer gunshot injuries
Bahraich (UP), Oct 17: Five suspects in the killing of a man that triggered violence in Bahraich were arrested here Thursday after an encounter with the Uttar Pradesh Police in which two of them suffered gunshot injuries, a senior official said.
The accused were allegedly trying to flee to Nepal, which shares a border with Bahraich district in Uttar Pradesh, the officer said.
"Five accused have been arrested," Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Amitabh Yash told a news channel.
On the encounter, he said, "I have information of exchange of fire and gunshot injuries."
Yash, who is also the chief of the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police, said the Bahraich police, investigating the murder and subsequent violence, has already established the link of one of the accused in Nepal.
The condition of the duo is stated to be stable.
Director General of Police (DGP) Prashant Kumar said those arrested have been identified as Mohammad Faheen, Mohammad Sarfaraz and Abdul Hameed, who are named accused in the FIR -- and two others Mohammad Taleem alias Sabloo and Mohammad Afzal.
According to Kumar, a police team arrested Faheen and Taleem. Acting on the information given by the duo, the team went to recover the weapon used in the murder in the Nanpara area of the district, however, it came under fire from Hameed, Sarfaraz and Afzal. In retaliatory firing, Sarfaraz and Taleem were seriously injured.
"They are being treated. The weapon used in the murder has been recovered," the UP Police chief said in a statement.
A doctor at a local health care centre said, "Two people were brought here around 2.35 pm. One of them was named Sarfaraz and the other Taleem. One of them had injuries on his left leg and the other on his right leg."
"The bullets are still inside their bodies. I have referred them to the district hospital in Bahraich for X-ray and further management. Both are in normal condition," he told reporters.
Violence broke out at Maharajganj in the Mahsi tehsil of Bahraich district on Sunday allegedly over loud music being played outside a place of worship during a Durga Puja immersion procession.
A local, Ram Gopal Mishra, 22, part of the passing group, died of gunshot wounds in the ensuing violence, triggering vandalism and arson in the area with mobs torching several houses, shops, showrooms, hospitals and vehicles.
Meanwhile, Rukhsar, the daughter of accused Abdul Hameed, the landlord accused of firing at Mishra, said, "At around 4 pm yesterday, my father and two brothers, Sarfaraz and Faheem, and another youth were picked up by the UP STF."
"My husband and brother-in-law have already been picked up. There is no news of them. We fear that they may have been killed in an encounter," she claimed in a video.
Shortly after the encounter, the Samajwadi Party took to social media citing "rampant crimes" in the state and questioned if "riots and encounters" were being staged to divert people's attention from law and order issues.
"Crimes are rampant in the BJP-Yogi government, jewelery of women, sisters and daughters is being stolen and snatched. Are riots being instigated to divert public attention from these crimes and are encounters being carried out to hush the matter?" the SP's media cell posted on X.
It also attached a clip of a Hindi news article with the headline: "Chain looted from a medicine trader by goons near a state minister's house in Muzaffarnagar".
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
