Kanpur encounter: Vikas Dubey’s aide arrested; UP govt announces Rs 1 lakh reward for tracing gangster

A country-made pistol was also recovered from him, police said.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government today increased the reward on prime accused Dubey’s head from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.

A reward of Rs 25,000 was also announced for all the 20 persons who have been booked along with the main accused in the FIR. Raids are underway to nab the culprits.

Inspector General, Kanpur Range, Mohit Agarwal said, “Daya Shankar was named in the FIR and police had declared a reward of Rs 25,000 on his head. He is a close associate of Vikas Dubey and had also fired on the police party.”

Shankar used to move around with Dubey, police said. His family, including his wife Rekha and two sons, stay at Dubey’s house, they added.

Police are also trying to check if Shankar has any criminal record. “We have not found any case against him so far,” an officer said.

Acting on a tip off, police on Sunday morning tried to nab Shankar in Kalyanpur area of the city. At around 4.30 am, the cops spotted Shankar on a motorcycle and signaled him to stop. Shankar opened fire and tried to escape but the police retaliated. Shankar got injured in the gun battle, police said.

In a video which is being circulated on social media, Shankar is purportedly heard saying that Dubey was tipped about the raid last week from the police station itself. Shankar is also heard saying that Dubey was locked inside his house at the time of the encounter and did not see anything.

When contacted, SSP Kanpur, Dinesh Kumar P said, “We are already conducting an inquiry on the allegation that Dubey was tipped off about the raid.” He added that a reward of Rs 25,000 was declared on all the persons named in the FIR.