Attack on Bhim Army chief: Upset over Aazad’s actions against our community, accused tell cops

According to police, the bullet grazed Azad’s abdomen, and he was rushed to a hospital in Deoband. (ANI)

These three people are residents of Rankhandi in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district: Vikas alias Vicky, Prashant and Lavish alias Abhishek. The remaining one is a taxi driver from Haryana’s Karnal district, also named Vikas.

The Haryana Special Task Force and Uttar Pradesh police officers nabbed the four in a joint operation near a dhaba in Shahzadpur area of Haryana’s Ambala district on Saturday morning.

A police officer said: “Vikas’s (Karnal) cousin is married in Rankhandi village. So, he used to go to Rankhandi and came in contact with these youths.”

There were five people inside the car, including Azad and his younger brother, when they were attacked. (Special Arrangement)

On June 28, they allegedly fired three shots at Aazad’s SUV in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoband. Aazad suffered a bullet injury and was taken to a hospital.

A Haryana police officer said: “During preliminary investigation by cops in Haryana, the accused stated they were upset because of the activities of Bhim Army against their community events during the past few years. One of them was an alleged attack on the Maharana Pratap Bhawan in UP’s Malikpur while another was an alleged attack on a rally of Rajputs in UP’s Sabirpur. The accused said they were also upset because of Azad’s statements on social media.”

This officer said the final interrogation of the accused and investigation of the matter would be conducted by the UP police because the attack on Azad had taken place in their jurisdiction.

Police said they have seized two country-made pistols, cartridges and a car allegedly used in the crime based on the information provided by the accused. They have been charged with attempted murder, criminal conspiracy, intimidation and under the SC/ST Act. A case under the Arms Act has also been lodged against them.

None of the accused have studied above intermediate and would do odd jobs, said an officer. Rankhandi village pradhan Pramod Rana claimed the arrested people were known to create a nuisance in the village and involved in criminal activity.

A look at the previous cases against all four accused:

Lavish Singh alias Abhishek

He has three cases against him, including an attempted murder charge. All the cases were lodged at Deoband police station in Saharanpur over the last two years. The other charges relate to criminal intimidation and the Arms Act. Village pradhan Rana said Lavish was unemployed and would do odd jobs. His father Virendra Singh is a truck driver. “Lavish’s uncle has criminal cases against him,” claimed the pradhan.

Vikas alias Vicky (Saharanpur)

Of the three old cases against Vikas, two are in connection with attempted murder. He was booked once on an attempt to murder charge this year and once in 2021. The Saharanpur Police also booked Vikas in 2021 after they seized allegedly robbed items from him. The Rankhandi pradhan said Vikas lived along with his mother and younger brother in the village. “Vikas’s mother works as an Anganwadi worker and runs the family. Vikas, who is jobless, had left his studies,” said the pradhan.

Prashant

He was booked in 2019 for allegedly assaulting and threatening a person. The 2019 case was lodged at Deoband police station in Saharanpur. Pradhan Rana said Prashant lives in the village with his parents, who are farmers.

Vikas alias Vicky (Karnal)

Vikas would visit Rankhandi village to meet a relative, which is when he met the other three. Except for the Aazad case, Vikas faces no other previous charge, said police. Police said Vikas used to come to Saharanpur in his car, which he used as a taxi. The four accused used to travel around in this car. Rana said Vikas is also a distant relative of another accused, Prashant.