In a replay, second CMO shot dead in six months

According to eyewitnesses,the incident took place around 6.15 am. Dr Singh was accompanied by his friend Dr PK Singh,who according to sources,jumped into the nearby nullah when miscreants opened fire on the CMO. The CMO’s body remained on the spot for about two hours before police sent it for postmortem. Police are taking PK Singh’s help in preparing the sketch of the assailants.

Police teams from Crime Branch and Special Task Force rushed to the spot and talked to locals and the deceased’s family for investigation.

DIG Lucknow DK Thakur said,“The assailants fired the first bullet from behind and later come in front of Dr Singh and pumped bullets into his body. At least 10 bullet injuries have been reported in the postmortem report.”

About the possible motive behind the murder,Thakur said probably some anti-social elements were not happy with working of Dr Singh. “Singh had told his colleagues and friends that irregularities prevailed in his department and he was trying to remove them with the support of the Minister concerned and other senior officials,” DIG said.

“The financial matters that were being dealt by Singh would also be investigated,” DIG said. CMO’s cousin IP Singh has lodged an FIR of murder against two unidentified persons in this connection. Singh was first posted in Basti district hospital as a cardiologist. Later,he got postings in Balrampur hospital in Lucknow and later as a senior cardiologist in Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital. He was also the general secretary of Provincial Medical Services Association (PMSA) for two consecutive terms. He was in Lucknow since 1996.

CMO’s wife Sarla Singh is a housewife. His elder son Rohit works in Bangalore while younger son Kartikeya is a student of B.Tech first year in Ram Swaroop College of Engineering and Technology in Lucknow.

“Papa had never talked about any threat or any political pressure. But in last one week,I saw stress and tension on his face. He came home late from office. On March 31,he became very late and arrived at 2 am,” Kartikeya said.

Family members and relatives claimed Dr Singh was delighted on his posting as CMO. Singh’s cousin IP Singh said,“He was honest and there was no dispute among the family members. But he was under stress because of work in last few days.”

The state Information Department,late on Saturday evening,released a letter written to Chief Secretary,Uttar Pradesh by IP Singh. Singh,in the letter,has stated that BP Singh was under no fear or tension regarding his posting as CMO in Lucknow and has asked the state government to conduct a time-bound and impartial investigation. On the other hand,the UP PMS Association has demanded the state government to transfer the murder case to CBI.

Dr BP Singh was reportedly part of the group of association members who had moved the court challenging the government’s decision to create the post of CMO Family Welfare and the case is still pending with the court. Dr Singh had found himself in the eye of the storm after he himself was posted as CMO Family Welfare,Lucknow in February this year. The post of CMO Family Welfare was created parallel to CMO Health by a government order dated May 5 last year for better implementation of NRHM projects. The CMO Family welfare has all the drawing and distribution rights of the funds sanctioned for various schemes under NRHM.

UP DGP Karamvir Singh held a meeting with senior officials of the Special Task Force (STF) and Lucknow this evening and constituted a joint team to probe into the case. SP (Trans-Gomti) Nitin Tiwari and SP (Crime) GP Chaturvedi from Lucknow police would coordinate with STF officials in the investigation.