Mehar case: Report says cops erred at every step

new delhi, MARch 27 : In a damning report for the khaki in the state, the Lucknow IG’s internal report to the top cop has said the police “erred at every step” in the Mehar Bhargava murder case. The mistakes, notes the report submitted to Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) Yashpal Singh last evening, “could cost the probe dear during trial.”

The Indian Express has learnt that police did not even record Bhargava’s statement—which would now have been a dying declaration. Besides, the Hazratganj police failed to undertake its primary duty in reaching the crime spot within the response time. Besides, they showed no urgency in raiding accused Sachin Pahari's hideouts or issue warrants against him. The whole case was treated “as routine by the investigators who just sat glued to their seats in the police station”, Lucknow IG (Zone) O P Tripathi’s report says.

DGP Yashpal Singh had asked the IG on Sunday to examine the city police’s role and trace the reason behind police failure to nab the criminals. “The Hazratganj police should have raided the flat in Dalippur Tower in which criminals were residing. It might have helped police to get an early lead about the criminals’ whereabouts,” IG Tripathi said.

About the police failure to record Mehar’s statement, the IG said: “Meher’s statement was a clinching evidence for us, but police never made any effort to contact the family or doctors at Apollo (hospital, in delhi) to record her statement, though she was admitted there for almost a month before her death on March 25. That would have now been a dying declaration against the accused. Neither did police contact the hospital to collect her injury report to ascertain where exactly she was shot. All these things will be vital during trial — we have all seen the fate of the Jessica Lall case.”

Though the main accused Sachin Pahari was identified on March 1, a day after the murder, the police made no effort to raid his possible hideouts, the IG said. “That meant he had an easy escape route, and the police applied for his non-bailable warrant after over a fortnight. All this should have been done immediately. Just a routine reward of Rs 2,500 was declared on the accused.”

(With inputs from Lucknow)

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