A local court has issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against Samajwadi Party MLA Irfan Solanki and his younger brother Rizwan, who are wanted on suspicion of setting fire to a woman’s home in order to take possession of the property.
Anand Prakash Tiwari, Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), stated that the NBW was granted by a special MP-MLA court on Wednesday following the filing of a complaint against them at Jajmau police station.
Since the duo has been missing for ten days, the search is on to find them. The MLA and his brother’s alleged hiding spots are being raided by a number of police teams. According to intelligence reports, they may have sought refuge in neighbouring districts or the state capital.
A woman named Nazir Fatima said that on November 7 the MLA and his brother set fire to her home in an effort to take her land. She said that due to a wedding, the family was away. The aforementioned property is next to the MLA’s residence.
Nazir stated she owned a 535-square-yard property in the affluent Defence Colony where she had been living since 1986, but the MLA and his family were attempting to seize it in whatever way they could. To preserve the property, the entire family was residing in a thatched hut there. They had already grabbed about 200 square yards of her land, she claimed.
The police investigated her allegation and charged Irfan Solanki and Rizwan with arson, intimidation, and assault on November 7. Police commissioner BP Jogdand had ordered a forensic assessment of the scene because the MLA alleged he was being framed and the fire was caused by crackers.
Praveen Srivastava, in command of the forensic team, delivered his findings to the Jajmau police, with whom the case was lodged, on Thursday. According to a report by HT, an inflammable chemical was used to set fire to the property, which refutes the firecracker explanation.
On Thursday, the police acquired a non-bailable warrant from the court based on the forensics findings. If the MLA and his brother do not surrender, police authorities said the process of attaching their properties would begin soon. Abhishek Shukla, Station House Officer of Jajmau Police Station, was suspended for failing to take action against the SP MLA and refusing to listen to the woman’s allegation.
SP MLA Irfan Solanki and his brother have been charged with IPC Sections 147 (rioting), 327 (voluntarily causing harm to extort property), 427 (mischief causing damage), 386 (extortion by putting a person in fear of death or grievous harm), 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to destroy house), 504 (intentional insult), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 120B. (criminal conspiracy). Irfan is an MLA from Sisamau in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
