UP: Bahraich murder accused shot in police encounter near Nepal border

Sarfaraz and Fahim, who are accused of killing Ram Gopal Mishra during a procession in Bahraich, were shot during a police encounter on Thursday. India Today reported that the encounter happened near the Nepal border. The police claimed that the accused tried to flee to Nepal.

Ram Gopal Mishra was shot dead during a Durga idol immersion procession in Bahraich on October 13.

Sarfaraz and Faheem were injured in their legs. Both are sons of Abdul Hameed, the main accused in the Bahraich violence case. The accused, injured in the encounter, have been referred to the district hospital. 

A total of five people were arrested after the encounter on Thursday. 

Meanwhile, Rukhsar, the daughter of Abdul Hameed, who is a landlord in Bahraich, said the UP Special Task Force (STF) detained her father, her two brothers, and another young man at around 4 pm on Wednesday. Her husband and her brother-in-law were picked by the STF too. "We have not received any information about them from any police station, and we fear they may be killed in an encounter!" 

Bahraich SP Vrinda Shukla said, "5 people have been arrested. Two of them have been injured in police firing. I am here to assess their condition. One of the injured is Md. Sarfaraz, the other other is Md. Talib."

Congress leader Avinash Pandey targeted the state government, saying: "Encounters are happening on a daily basis in the state. What is happening in Bahraich, is unfortunate and it is the duty of the administration to ensure normalcy returns."

On Wednesday, the police arrested Danish alias Shaheer Khan, one of the six accused named in the murder case. The first case was registered in the matter on Sunday night at the Hardi police station against six named and four unidentified people on behalf of the deceased's family.

Apart from this, a case has been registered at Kotwali Nagar against those who allegedly vandalised a hospital, nine cases have been filed by both communities against each other on charges of vandalism and arson. 

There was heavy police deployment in the district, particularly in the 20-km radius of Maharajganj town in the Mahsi tehsil where communal violence broke out on Sunday leading to the death of Mishra.

Bahraich shares an international border with Nepal. The Sashastra Seema Bal has increased vigilance on the border and reached out to their counterparts, too, asking them to put a check on "unnecessary" movement of people.

On Wednesday, the police said five FIRs had been lodged in connection with the violence, mostly against unidentified persons. Searches for key accused Abdul Hamid, his sons Rinku alias Sarfaraz alias Salman, and Fahim were underway. It was in their house where Mishra was injured. 

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was receiving hourly updates on the situation in Bahraich and had directed for the deployment of additional force along with senior police and administration officers on the ground, the government said. 

(With inputs from Santosh Kumar Sharma and Arvind Ojha)