On the 1st of July, four accused were arrested for allegedly carrying out an attack on Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Azad, three days ago on 28th June. The accused were arrested near a dhaba in the Shahzadpur area of Ambala when they were reportedly on their way to surrender in Ambala court.
Attack on Bhim Army leader Chandra Shekhar Aazad | Dr Vipin Tada, SSP Saharanpur says, "Four accused have been arrested from Ambala, Haryana. They are now being brought to Saharanpur."
— ANI (@ANI) July 1, 2023
Details awaited.
(File photo) pic.twitter.com/AK62Ig4tlx
Reportedly, the accused were identified as Vikas, Prashant, and Lovish. All three of them are said to be residents of Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. While the fourth accused Vikas hails from Karnal, Haryana.
The case has been registered at Deoband police station and the accused have been booked under various sections of law. The charges include Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code ( attempt to murder) and relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
As per media reports, this was a joint operation between the Ambala unit of the Haryana Special Task Force and the Uttar Pradesh Police.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Ambala STF unit, Aman Kumar informed the media that the accused were handed over to the UP Police for further investigation. DSP Kumar stated that it still remains to be seen whether the accused were staying at a hideout in Ambala or not. He also added that no weapon was recovered from the accused.
On 30 June, the Uttar Pradesh Police had registered an FIR. Earlier, the Police recovered the attack vehicle on the very same day when the incident took place, 28 June. Afterward, the Police took three suspects in custody in connection with this case.
On 28 June evening, the Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Azad was traveling in an SUV when some unidentified assailants opened fire on his car near the Gandhi Colony in Deoband. He sustained injuries and was quickly rushed to the SBD Hospital for treatment.
Arrests in connection to threatening social media posts
Earlier on June 30, a man was arrested for allegedly posting a threatening message on social media against the Bhim Army chief Azad.
Amethi’s Superintendent of Police, Elamaran G, informed that the Police registered a case on 29 June regarding a threatening post. The post targeting Azad was uploaded on the Facebook page called ‘Kshatriya of Amethi’.
In connection with this threatening post, the Police registered a case under section 506 of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology (IT) Act. Subsequently, a suspect named Vimlesh Singh was arrested for the alleged post. As per reports, he was not involved in the attack on Bhim Army Chief, however, preventive action was taken to maintain peace and order, the police statement said.
Reports claim that six days prior to the attack on Azad, a Facebook post claimed that the Bhim Army Chief would be killed by the Thakurs of Amethi in broad daylight.
On 29 June, another post on the same page asserted that Azad has been shot in the waist, but “next time he will not survive”.
