While the woman who made self-immolation bid after facing harassment by the cops in Barabanki succumbed to her injuries in the wee hours of Tuesday, her family members and Opposition Parties demanded a probe by the sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Reacting to a media query here on Tuesday morning, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav claimed that they ordered a magisterial enquiry into the incident and the accused cops were already placed under suspension. He said that further action will be taken in the matter only if the enquiry found the charges true.
“We want a CBI inquiry so that guilty involved in the heinous crime should be punished for their in-human act,” claimed son of the victim who died at Civil Hospital here on wee hours of Tuesday. “We demand that action be taken as per the dying declaration of my mother,” he asserted.
Sources said that the middle-aged woman had in her statement before the magistrate and media charged that the police station in-charge and sub-inspector set her on fire her when she refused to pay a Rs 1 lakh bribe for the release of her husband. She also reportedly accused the cops of trying to sexually exploit her. Expressing dissatisfaction over the sections under which the case was lodged against the two accused police officials, victim’s son said that a murder case should be lodged against the accused police officials and they should be arrested immediately. “The case lodged against them is not satisfactory... it
only concerns the charge of using abusive language,” he said, adding that even the suspension of the two is for keeping the woman’s husband in illegal confinement for over 24 hours. “Given these charges, the two will get reinstated very easily,” he said. The son claimed that they would also seek time to meet the chief minister soon to raise their demands.
Meanwhile Opposition Parties, including Congress and Bharatiya Janta Party, have also demanded a CBI probe into the matter and rejected the magisterial inquiry, saying it will serve no purpose. ``It would be most sensitive on part of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav that instead of taking stern action and getting the accused cops arrested immediately, he was trying to fool the entire public by claiming to have ordered magisterial enquiry into the Barabanki incident”, alleged chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Media Committee, Satyadeo Tripathi.
``Akhilesh Yadav should know that magisterial enquiry is mandatory in all such incidents as the crime was committed inside the police station”, pointed Tripathi while advising chief minister that instead of duping the public in the name or ordering magisterial enquiry, he should have showed most sensitivity by placing all the cops posted at Kothi police station, who were present at the time of incident under suspension and get the accused cops arrested and ordered a high level probe”, called Tripathi adding that the matter demanded a probe by CBI in order to ensure free and fair enquiry. Tripathi said that district police chief of Barabanki, Abdul Hameed, who was aware that husband of the above victim was illegally detained and that the cops had harassed the woman, should be also suspended as he remained mute spectator leaving the woman with no other option but to end her life.
BJP spokesman, Vijay Bhadhur Pathak, who too demanded a CBI probe into the matter alleged that the state had turned into a `jungle raj’ with no one including the members of fourth estate were safe here. ``law and order situation in the state had reached bottom but chief minister Akhilesh Yadav was either busy in cutting ribbons or giving patronage to criminals or to his Party leaders who were indulged in sensational crimes”, Pathak alleged.
It may be mentioned that the cops of the Kothi police station in Barabanki, had picked up a man who was accused of opening firing along with two others, over an alleged case of eve-teasing case reported Gaha hamlet of Kothi, on Sundayevening. Soon after the police brought and detained the above person in the name of grilling in the above mentioned matter, his wife pleading innocence of her husband, had knocked the door of the senior officers to get him released.
Reports further said that senior officers instructed station officer of Kothi police station, Ram Saheb Singh Yadav, to free the person if he was not involved in the case as claimed by the woman. The said woman claimed that when she went to the Kothi police station to request the cops to free her husband, they abused, humiliated and forcibly turned her out of the police station compound.
later the woman, who sat outside the police station all through the night in the hope that the cops would show some sympathy and release her husband, made a bizarre move on Monday morning. She reportedly sprinkle kerosene oil on her clothes and set herself fire to commit suicide be immolating herself in-front of Kothi police station. She was immediately rushed to the district hospital from where she was referred to lucknow in a serious condition. She reportedly accused the cops of trying to burn her alive after abusing and humiliating her. later a case was registered in the matter and Station Officer of Kothi police station, Ram Saheb Singh Yadav and sub-inspector Akhilesh Rai, were placed under suspension.