2 weeks after escape,Afghan drug lord remains at large

Lately,various security lapses have brought the management of the jail into the firing line. For instance,a gang war left one person murdered last week,and in the last fortnight two jail inmates have committed suicide.

The way Shah Jahan,a dreaded criminal,gave the slip to four security guards reminds one of a Bollywood movie. He told them he wanted to use the toilet and they did not check the room that had broken windows,allowing him to escape. The guards kept waiting for him outside while he jumped out,changed clothes and reportedly went to a waiting black car outside the hospital that took him away.

“It is surprising the way he gave the security men a slip. There seems to be the involvement of these security men to let him free. We are investigating the whole matter,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP) AS Chahal. He said they had no clue of Shah Jahan’s whereabouts. The police had arrested him following a major operation last year. “He is a hard-core criminal and head of the gangs involved in the smuggling. We have sent an alert all around but he seems to have left the state,” said Chahal.

Jail Superintendent GS Sidhu said they themselves were similarly concerned and had suspended all four security guards,namely Sudarshan Singh,Lakhbir Singh,Luvjeet Singh,and Sukhdev Singh. “A case has also been registered against them under sections 224and 222 of IPC,” said Sidhu,adding that they had stepped up security inside the jail to thwart escape plans of other prisoners.

Sources said Shah Jahan is running his own network of smugglers who are spread over Delhi,Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. His links with smugglers in Pakistan and Afghanistan were also under investigation when he slipped out. The police did not rule out his escape being stage-managed. “He was first denied admission to hospital,given the tricks he was playing. Later,he approached the High Court and we do not know how he got directions issued from the court to be admitted to hospital,” said the jail authorities.

Doctors who attended upon Shah Jahan said he had an acute case of diabetes that had weakened him entirely.