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As many as 18 police personnel, including a sub-inspector of a police outpost, have been suspended in connection with Tuesday’s firing in a courtroom in Bijnor that led to the death of a murder accused, and injuries to three others, including two policemen.
Apart from the sub-inspector, the 17 other suspended personnel are of the rank of constable, with five of them women.
All of them were attached to the ‘Jajji’ police outpost located on the court premises.
On Tuesday, assailants opened fire in a courtroom in Bijnor, killing a murder accused and injuring two policemen. Another murder accused took advantage of the commotion and managed to escape from the spot.
“Eighteen police personnel, including a sub-inspector, of a police outpost have been suspended for laxity in connection with Tuesday’s firing in Bijnor courtroom. The rest of the 17 are constables. They include 12 male constables and five female constables,” Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi said in a statement.
While recommending their suspension, Circle Officer (City) Arun Kumar Singh wrote a letter to Bijnor’s Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Tyagi, saying, “It is expected from the police personnel on duty that they should allow any person to enter the court premises only after proper checking and frisking.”
“Though the job of checking and frisking is quite challenging, as it has led to disputes between the police and advocates in the past, and a case has been registered. But, even then, the police personnel deployed in the security of the court are expected to discharge their duty with full dedication. However, this was not done, and as a result of which, the incident took place,” Singh said.
Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in the court premises in Muzaffarnagar in view of the firing incident in the Bijnor court.
Every person entering the court premises, except the staff and lawyers, is being physically checked.
The Muzaffarnagar court had witnessed a similar incident in 2015, when an armed man entered the courtroom masquerading as a lawyer and shot dead Vicky Tyagi, an alleged gangster.
According to police, among the three assailants arrested after the attack in the chief judicial magistrate’s court in Bijnor, is the son of the man murdered six months back.
The incident occurred when the three entered into the courtroom and showered bullets on two accused in the murder of property dealer Haji Ehsaan and his nephew in Najibabad area Bijnor district.
Both were brought to the CJM’s court for hearing from Tihar jail in Delhi on Tuesday afternoon when the assailants fired at them, leaving main accused Shahnawaz dead, Bijnor SP Sanjeev Tyagi had said.
SP (City) Laxmi Niwas Misra said Shahnawaz’s co-accused Jabbar managed to escape.
One of the injured policemen was referred to Meerut hospital where he was out of danger.
Chief Judicial Magistrate Yogesh Kumar escaped unhurt.
The SP said Haji Ehsaan’s son was among those arrested.