The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Lakhimpur Kheri case, on Friday, filed four more chargesheets against seven accused over the death of a driver and two Bharatiya Janata Party workers during the violence in Tikunia.
The SIT investigator filed the 500-page chargesheet on Friday in the court of chief judicial magistrate in connection with an FIR lodged by BJP worker Sumit Jaiswal.
All the seven are accused of lynching three people in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case after four farmers and a journalist were allegedly mowed down by a speeding vehicle. They are currently lodged in a jail.
The Lakhimpur Kheri case pertains to the violence that erupted in Lakhimpur Kheri district on October 3 last year. Eight people, including four farmers, two BJP workers, a driver and a local journalist, were killed in the incident. Union minister Ajay Misra Teni's son Ashish Misra is the prime accused in the case and has been lodged in jail since his arrest on October 9.
Two FIRs were lodged in connection with the incident.
The first FIR, number 219/2021, was lodged by farmer Jagjeet Singh in connection with the deaths of farmers and a journalist in which he implicated Ashish Mishra alias Monu, the son of the Union minister, and 15 to 20 others. The second FIR, number 220/221, was lodged by BJP worker Sumit Jaiswal in connection with the death of two party workers and a driver, in which he implicated unidentified assailants. Sumit Jaiswal is also a close aide of Ashish Misra.
On October 3, 2021, eight people were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri during violence that erupted when farmers were protesting against Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya's visit to the area. A vehicle allegedly linked to Ajay and Ashish Misra ran over some farmers, killing five. An angry mob burnt several vehicles and killed three people, taking the toll to eight.
The farmers’ bodies claimed that besides a journalist, four farmers, identified as Nakshatra Singh (55), Daljeet Singh (35), Lavepreet Singh (20) and Gurvendra Singh (18), died as vehicles mowed the protesters down on the Tikunia-Banbirpur road. Three other deaths were reported from the BJP's camp. They were travelling in a car and were allegedly dragged out of the car and lynched by the protesters.
The protesting farmers alleged that Union minister Ajay Misra Teni’s son Ashish was in one of the vehicles that ran over the protesters. However, both Teni and his son said they had proof of Ashish’s innocence. However during probe, the SIT found the minister’s son involved and made him prime accused in the case.