Last year, a firing incident was reported during Durga idol immersion in Munger city of Bihar, where the Bihar police were accused of using brutal force against the Hindu devotees when they took out a procession for the Visarjan at around midnight. They were accused of thrashing the devotees and resorting to open fire which resulted in the death of an 18-year-old youth, also leaving several others injured.
The Patna High Court had in April ordered the additional director general of CID to constitute an SIT of senior officers above the rank of DSP to interrogate the police personnel who were to be investigated in the firing case.
When the case came up for hearing before, the Patna High Court on May 19, the bench of Justice Rajiv Ranjan Prasad reportedly rebuked the CID officials, accusing it of going soft on sub-inspector Brijesh Kumar Singh, the prime accused in the case.
Patna HC slams CID for going soft on police officer accused in Munger firing incident
According to reports, the court slammed CID for giving ‘soft treatment’ to the police officer. It observed that the accused sub-inspector, who had fled with his firearms fearing arrest, was traced by the CID but was neither taken into custody nor was he interrogated by the officials. The CID merely made him submit his firearm and let him go, said the court.
The court reprimanded ADG CID Vinay Kumar during the virtual hearing, questioning him why sub-inspector Brijesh Kumar Singh was not interrogated or detained by the agency. The court told the ADG that it had reposed trust in him, that a fair investigation would be conducted and that no accused, no matter how powerful or prominent, would go free.
The High Court also came down heavily at CID, when it learnt that the agency had not yet ordered the telecom service providers to preserve phone call data of all the officers who were being investigated in the Munger firing case.
The ADG CID responded by assuring the court that the agency would amend the errors and take appropriate action within a week.
It is pertinent to note here that, Amarnath Poddar, the father of the 18-year-old youth, who had fallen prey to the brutal force used by Bihar police against the Hindu devotees, had moved the High Court requesting a CBI inquiry under the court’s supervision, in his son’s murder case.
Munger firing during Durga Puja Visarjan
The violence, as per reports, broke out after Kotwali police asked Hindus not to delay the idol immersion procession of Shadipur Badi Durga. Traditionally, the idols are immersed after three days of Vijayadashami but this time, in view of the first phase of Assembly polls in the state on October 28 (Wednesday), the administration had insisted on the immersion by 5 am on October 27 (Tuesday).
Durga puja organizers, as instructed, had taken out the procession allegedly with DJs close to midnight as they headed for the immersion. The situation turned ugly around 11.50 pm when police officials used brutal force on Hindus going for Durga Puja Visarjan.
The police reportedly unilaterally beat up four persons who were carrying idols on their shoulders. This sparked off a protest which led to the ensuing violence.
