On the evening of October 13, in Maharajganj Bazaar within the Hardi Police Station sector of Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh, a young man named Ramgopal Mishra was killed following a minor altercation during a Durga idol immersion procession. The clash escalated when stones were thrown at the idol, and religious flags were removed, leading to the outbreak of gunfire. By Thursday, police had arrested five principal suspects. Among them, Sarfaraz and Taleem were encountered on the Nanpara-Rupaidiha highway, near the large canal under the Nanpara Kotwali police station, resulting in both sustaining gunshot wounds to the legs during a confrontation with the police. Meanwhile, SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav questioned the legitimacy of this incident and previous encounters, labeling them as controversial.
Akhilesh Yadav remarked that these are not genuine encounters but rather deliberate killings, which the public is witnessing closely. He also mentioned that following the formation of the Bharatiya Janata Party government in UP, the former DGP stated that these were all fake encounters. He noted that during investigations, nobody stands in support of the police officers involved, and some even end up in jail due to false encounter cases. He also cited a figure on how many police officers had faced jail time for fake encounter cases.
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Akhilesh Yadav further asserted that what's happening isn't an encounter, but killings, which the public is fully aware of. He claimed that BJP’s straightforward strategy is to harass initially, and when there’s opposition, they take legal action and trap people in false cases.
Violence occurred on 13-14 October
After the violence during the immersion procession on the 13th and 14th of October in Bahraich, UP, police presented five accused—Abdul Hamid, Rinku alias Sarfaraz, Faheem, Taleem, and Afzal—at CJM Pratibha Chaudhary's residence in Judges Colony on Thursday, where they were sent to judicial custody for a 14-day remand.
By the fifth day post-violence, peace appeared to return to the city. Following the incident, heavy police force was deployed at the central market town clock circle ahead of the first Friday prayer post-violence. Police vigilance remained stringent at each intersection. Men from the Muslim community peacefully offered prayers at all major mosques in the city. Throughout this period, DM Monika Rani, SP Vrinda Shukla, City Magistrate Shalini Prabakar, and City Police Officer Ramesh Pandey were continuously patrolling the city.
It begins with an altercation during a religious procession...
Escalation leads to the tragic death of Ramgopal Mishra...
