Budaun HPCL plant killings: 2 cops suspended
After two senior officials associated with an ethanol plant were shot dead here, two police officers have been suspended with immediate effect for alleged negligence, following a report by the circle officer, officials said on Friday.
Meanwhile, family members of one of the deceased, Harshit Mishra, alleged that the concerns over the threat to his life were not heeded by the police despite complaints in the past.
Mishra (34), who was the assistant general manager (AGM) at the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) plant in Sejni village, was killed on Thursday, along with Sudhir Kumar Gupta (58), a general manager.
Reacting to the incident, Budaun Lok Sabha MP Aditya Yadav said the broad-daylight killing of two officials inside an industrial complex raised serious questions about the law-and-order situation.
Inspector Ajay Kumar and Sub-Inspector Dharmendra Kumar were suspended on Thursday night for alleged negligence in the discharge of their duties, officials said. The action followed a report submitted by Ujhani Circle Officer Devendra Kumar.
A crowd comprising family members of Mishra gathered outside the morgue here on Friday morning -- where the bodies of the victims were kept.
Rani Devi, Mishra’s mother, alleged that her son had informed the district magistrate (DM), superintendent of police (SP) and the local MLA about threats to his life.
She alleged that the accused, Ajay Pratap Singh alias Ramu, used to issue open threats and intimidate people by claiming to be affiliated with a criminal gang. “My son told everyone that his life was in danger. He approached the SP, the DM, and even the MLA, but no one listened to us. There were many people present at the meeting; why, then, was only my child killed? No one else even suffered a scratch. The security personnel were also complicit,” she claimed.
Prabhat Mishra, the maternal uncle of the deceased AGM, questioned the administration’s conduct, stating that the accused had been issuing threats and tailing vehicles for some time, yet the police “never took serious action”.
“The biggest question remains: how did he manage to enter the plant premises with a gun?” he said.
Sushil Kumar, the father of the deceased, said his son had repeatedly sought protection from the police and the administration.
“My son had sought protection from the DM, the SP, and the Musajhag police station. A case was indeed registered, yet the accused continued to roam freely. Today, he returned to the scene and murdered two people,” he told PTI at the morgue, alleging that the killing was part of a premeditated plan.
He further named a top HPCL official among four and accused them of being involved in the conspiracy to commit the murder.
In a post on X on Thursday, the Badaun MP termed the incident “deeply tragic and shameful” and said criminals had become emboldened in the state.
He demanded the swift arrest of the perpetrators and the strictest possible punishment for those involved.
The two officials of the ethanol plant in Budaun were shot dead on Thursday after a blacklisted vendor allegedly opened fire inside the HPCL plant under the Musajhag police station area.
Police have arrested the alleged shooter, who is a former vendor at the plant, officials said.
They said Gupta, the deceased general manager, had recently terminated some employees and blacklisted vendors whose work was not satisfactory. Singh was among those removed.
Since the termination, Singh had been upset with the general manager and had threatened him on several occasions, they said.
