The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Uttar Pradesh police is reported to have recovered the murder weapon on Friday, used to lynch two local BJP workers and a driver of an SUV during Lakhimpur Kheri violence at Tikunia on October 3. The police recovered the stick during the search following information revealed by Gurvinder Singh (26) who is among the accused of lynching BJP workers and the driver.
Eight people had died when the farmers’ protest turned violent on 3rd October. The deceased included four farmers, a journalist, two BJP workers and the driver of SUV Mahindra Thar, owned by Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra. Deceased BJP workers were identified as Shubham Mishra and Shyam Sundar Nishad. The deceased driver Hariom Mishra was also associated with the BJP as a worker.
Hence, three BJP workers were lynched by farmers who were protesting against three farming laws proposed by the Centre. However, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested Ajay Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra on the charge of leading a convoy that hit the farmers, killing four farmers and a journalist. But the minister claimed that his son was neither at the spot nor was he part of any convoy. It was widely alleged that BJP workers were attacked unprovoked and the mob was quite violent.
Gurvinder Singh said that he was among the protesters who attacked and killed them. He was arrested along with another accused Vichitra Singh earlier. Gurvinder Singh is a resident of Mokramau Aliganj in Lakhimpur Kheri district whereas Vichitra Singh is a resident of Bheera in the same district. The SIT requested the court for his police custody to recover the stick which he had allegedly used to kill the victims. The court granted three days of police custody starting from the morning of October 28. Gurvinder was taken to the crime spot on Friday morning and the crime scene was recreated to understand the sequence of the crime.
Reportedly, Gurvinder Singh was arrested on the basis of many visuals and graphics SIT had gathered during the course of the investigation. Notably, the SIT had released six photographs of suspects who were alleged to have killed three BJP workers. They are seen standing close to a burning SUV with sticks and black flags. It seems that the SIT releasing pictures of suspects has worked in identifying the accused persons responsible for the killing of BJP workers. According to the media reports SIT has got some inputs about one more accused who was part of this killing.
