While the police are yet to make any move to arrest or even grill the accused minister’s son, the family of a 19-year-old farmer who died in Lakhimpur Kheri during a protest on Sunday, has refused to cremate the body until the autopsy report was provided to them.
Lovepreet Singh and three other farmers were among the nine killed in Sunday's violence during a protest against Union Minister Ajay Mishra's visit. Four farmers were allegedly run over by a car in the minister's convoy.
"My son was crushed under a car. There has been no action against the person responsible for it. The administration is trying to cover up," said Lovepreet's father and added, "He (Lovepreet) had left home saying he was heading out for a good cause."
Lovepreet's body has been kept in a casket and the entire family is waiting for the autopsy report.
"When he was taken to the hospital, he called and said, 'Please come quickly'. When we reached the hospital, he was no more,” said the distraught father.
Farmers allege that the car which mowed down Lovepreet was being driven by the minister's son, Ashish Mishra.
"My son has been shot. Teni's (Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni) son has shot him. We should get justice for this. They have even falsified the post-mortem report. We should get justice for that," his father asserted.
Sources said that the autopsy report does not mention injuries due to bullet wounds on any of the deceased farmers. A senior doctor who was part of the post-mortem panel at the Lakhimpur district hospital told some media persons that the cause of deaths in the autopsy reports included multiple fractures after being run over by a heavy object (like a vehicle) and injuries suffered due to assault. While the autopsy report has not been made public by the authorities yet, the families of the deceased said that they would keep protesting until the autopsy reports were out.
Officials from the district administration had reached the house of the grieving family in Bahraich and had urged them to perform the last rites of the victim. However, the family demanded that another post-mortem be conducted to ascertain the cause of Lovepreet’s death.
The family maintains that Lovepreet had been shot, and that bullet wounds were visible on his body, even as the post-mortem report lacked any mention of the same. The family demanded that the post-mortem be conducted in another state.
Dilbagh Singh, a farmers' leader who was present, added, "The minister's son realised that he may get caught, so he shot one of the farmers and fled."
Meanwhile, confirming Mishra's presence on the scene, sources said that a senior police officer present at the spot said, "Ashish Mishra did not expect such a crowd and tried to escape, resulting in the incident."
Tejinder Virk, an injured protester presently under medical treatment at Delhi's Medanta Hospital, also told some media persons that Union Minister Ajay Mishra's son was part of the convoy of cars that allegedly mowed down at least three farmers on Sunday.
Virk, who had organised the protest on Sunday, reportedly against the Union minister's visit to the area, told an electronic channel "We were told at 3 pm that their route has changed. We started going back peacefully. Suddenly, speeding cars hit us from behind. The car was at over 100 km/hour speed. They ran us over on purpose. Ajay Mishra's son and his men were in the car. Then I lost consciousness."
Meanwhile, sources said that on the complaint of the family of one of the victims lynched by the mob, Kheri police registered another FIR against farmers leader Tejinder Singh Virk. According to a report, Virk has political connections with the Samajwadi Party. Amandeep Singh Sindhu, Mahendra Singh and unknown persons have also been named in the complaint along with Virk.
The written complaint has been filed by Bharatiya Janata Party supporter Shubham Mishra's father Vijay Mishra at the Tikonia police station of Lakhimpur Kheri. According to the complaint, Shubham Mishra had gone to Banbirpur village to participate in a wrestling competition. The complaint further states that Shubham boarded UP 31 AS 1000 Mahindra Thar vehicle and one Hari Om Mishra was driving the vehicle. The duo was going to receive the chief guest of the programme. Hardly three kilometers from the venue, farmers were protesting and creating chaos near the Tikonia square. According to Shubham's father the protesters started pelting stones at the vehicle in which his son was travelling.
Vijay Mishra alleged in his complaint that he learnt about the incident from one Luv Kush. "He narrated to me the horrific incident of how my son and Hari Om Mishra were killed by protesters. Luv Kush told me that he saw Amandeep Singh Sindhu, Mahendra Singh and Tejinder Singh Virk and several other people beating my son Shubham and Hariom with swords and sticks," Mishra wrote in the complaint. In the complaint, Vijay Mishra has also mentioned that his son's purse, mobile phone and a gold chain were looted.
On October 3, nine people were killed in violence in Lakhimpur Kheri. The farmers claim that a car driven by Union Minister Ajay Mishra Teni's son Ashish ran over the protesters in Tikonia when the protesters were returning after holding demonstrations against the Centre's controversial three farm laws. However, the Union minister denied all charges and said that his son was not present at the spot.