Hathras | They were arrested in an ‘encounter’, one was ‘shot in the leg’ — now they’ve been freed for lack of evidence

Circle Officer, Hathras, Yogendra Krishna Narayan, who is supervising the probe, also said: “The closure report has been filed on the basis of insufficient evidence found during the investigation of the case.” He added that the case could be reopened if any new evidence is found.”

The incident had sparked controversy after their families claimed the encounter was fake and that the two — a minor, according to the family, and Sonu alias Omveer (30) — were picked up from their homes. Following the allegations, two police officers were suspended and separate inquiries were ordered by the district administration and police.

The names of the duo surfaced during an investigation into a case lodged under BNS sections 309(5) (robbery), 333 (house trespass), and 109(1) (attempt to murder) at Mursan police station. A separate case of attempt to murder and the Arms Act was also registered against them in connection with the alleged firing incident.

The first FIR was lodged by the Hathras Police on October 9 based on a complaint by Amit Kumar Aggarwal (55), a local trader who runs a fertiliser shop in Hathras.

In his complaint, he had alleged that two unidentified men with weapons entered his house around 10.15 am that day with the intention to steal. “… One of the criminals held a pistol to my wife’s ear and told her to go to the cupboard. The other pointed a pistol at my elderly mother, causing her to scream,” he told the police, as per the FIR.

Amit further told the police that on hearing the screams, two of his shop employees and neighbours rushed to his home. On seeing them, the two assailants fled while firing in the air, he claimed.

The families of Sonu and the boy, however, had a different version of events.

Sitting under a mango tree at Bara Kalan village, below a banner that read ‘Kisano par farzi muqadama aur farzi encounter kab tak (How long will fake cases and fake encounters against farmers continue?)’, Raj Veer Singh (68), Sonu’s father, said the families have known Amit for over 25 years.

He claimed, “Three months ago, Sonu had given Rs 3 lakh to Amit to procure fertiliser. On October 9, he went to his shop to get it but an argument broke out over the rate. Amit had promised to sell it to us for Rs 1,600 a packet but later demanded Rs 1,800.”
Veer Singh claimed Amit called Sonu to his house to discuss a better rate as he did not want the farmers standing near his shop to know about the argument. On his way to Amit’s house that evening, Sonu picked up the minor boy, who, according to his family members, was heading to a tuition class.

Villagers claimed that on the evening of October 10, the Hathras Police, along with an SOG (Special Operations Group) team, arrived and detained three people — Sonu’s cousins Akash and Ajay and the boy’s father — and demanded that Sonu and the boy be handed over to them. They claimed the police told them the two had gone to rob Amit’s home and were spotted in CCTV footage.

Veer Singh also alleged that the police demanded Rs 5 lakh and assured that both would be released soon. “We believed them… police released the three men they had detained,” he alleged.

The families alleged that Sonu and the boy were, however, taken to the police station and tortured. They also alleged Sonu was shot in his left leg a few kilometers away from the village.

On learning of the “encounter”, the family protested outside Mursan police station and gave a memorandum to the Hathras District Collector. Joined by several local public representatives, they also met senior police and administrative officials to demand action.

The boy’s uncle said his nephew had nothing to do with the incident and had only taken a lift from Sonu to his tuition class at Mursan. “We don’t know what happened after that, but the police arrested my nephew and beat him up,” he alleged.

When contacted, Amit’s brother Udit Aggawal, denied the claims that they were given an advance of Rs 3 lakh. He alleged Sonu and his cousin, Ajay, owed them Rs 18,000 and 1.52 lakh respectively and that they never came to the shop to ask for fertiliser.

“Amit and I live in a joint family and we have owned the shop together for the last 40 years,” said Udit.

“On October 9, we were at the shop when two men barged into our house, 500 metres away… Had we wanted to frame them, why would we file a complaint against unidentified men?” he said.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Station House Officer (SHO) of Mursan police station, V P Giri, said the suspects were identified based on CCTV footage and manual inputs.

Police had claimed the suspects were apprehended following crossfiring, during which Sonu sustained a bullet injury to his leg. They also claimed to have recovered a weapon from their possession.

On Friday, ASP Singh said inquiries ordered into the entire incident are still underway, and the future course of action will be decided based on the reports.

Hathras District Magistrate Rahul Pandey had constituted a committee headed by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate to examine the allegations. In a parallel move, Deputy Inspector General (Aligarh Range) Prabhakar Chaudhary had instructed the Additional Superintendent of Police, Aligarh, to carry out an independent inquiry into the matter.

Superintendent of Police, Hathras, Chiranjeev Nath Sinha, had earlier suspended SHO Arti Singh of Mursan police station and Inspector Mukesh Kumar, in-charge of the Anti-Theft Team, on charges of negligence during the arrest proceedings of the two accused.
On the allegations by the boy’s family that he is a minor, SP Sinha said on Friday, “As per our information, he is not a minor. We have asked the family for documents to enquire into their claims. We have not received them yet.”

SHO Giri also denied claims of the two being beaten in custody or money being demanded from the families.

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