UP cops book CMO,5 others

Health Clerks murder: Victims wife alleges CMO,his deputy ordered the hit

The police on Friday registered a murder case against six health officials of Lakhimpur Kheri district,including the Chief Medical Officer CMO and Deputy CMO,in connection with the death of Community Health Centre CHC clerk Mahendra Sharma.

The case was registered on the complaint of the victims wife,who alleged that her husband was murdered by officials of the CHC on orders from the CMO and the Deputy CMO,the police said. The case was registered at the Kotwali Sadar police station.

The 52-year-old Sharmas body bearing injury marks was recovered from his official flat on the CHC premises Wednesday evening and the autopsy had declared it a case of murder.

Earlier on Friday,a team from the Forensic Science Lab in Lucknow visited the murder spot and collected samples.

Lakhimpur Kheri Additional SP Rajiv Malhotra told The Indian Express that the case against the six health officials was registered on the complaint of Sharmas wife Mithilesh. She alleged her husband was murdered by Superintendent of the CHC at Pasgawan Dr S C Gupta,CHC clerk Rajesh Kumar Hans and UP Health Ministerial Associations Kheri district unit president and secretary Kuldip Mishra and Munnalal Verma,respectively.

She alleged the murder was executed on orders from CMO Dr J P Bhargava and Deputy CMO Balbir Singh.

Malhotra said the police would investigate into the allegations before initiating an action against the accused.

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Mithilesh told The Indian Express that Gupta,Hans,Mishra and Verma had come to her house in Kheri on February 6 and 7. They allegedly forced her husband to accompany them to the CMOs office to discuss some important official work. The four had threatened her husband with dire consequences if he did not follow the CMOs instructions,she alleged.

She alleged that the CMO had got some important records related to NRHM work collected from her husbands almirah at Pasgawan CHC with the help of Gupta and Hans. Her husband had sent a letter to the CMO on January 30 objecting to this. He did not join work at the CHC where he was transferred recently before settling this issue.

Mithilesh said her husband told her before he went missing on February 7 that these people will eliminate him,as he was not listening to their instructions.

Rejecting the allegations levelled against him,Bhargava said he was not even aware that Sharma was missing. The probe will find out the truth,he added.