UP: Report Says Accuse Who Killed Munna Bajrangi Inside Jail Was Paid To Kill

Munna Bajrangi alias Prem Prakash, a well-known gangster was shot several times by his jail inmate Sunil Rathi. The superintendent of police Jai Prakash told the media outlet, “A pistol, two magazines and 22 cartridges have been recovered from the drain inside the jail”, adding that it is yet to be ascertained how the pistol reached the jail, NDTV reports.

Rathi has admitted to killing him saying that the two had heated debate after Bajrangi called him fat. As reported by The New Indian Express, Rathi said, “I took affront to him calling me fat. I objected to his statement and we got into a heated debate.”

However, it is being reported that eye-witnesses disagreed with Rathi’s statement and mentioned that no provocation happened before the incident. Bajrangi was apparently taking a walking in the garden when he was shot by Rathi with his own pistol.

The Gangster was killed hours before he was supposed to be produced in a local court for a case related to extortion money. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, “Such an incident happening on the jail premises is quite serious. Hence, I have ordered a judicial inquiry and the suspension of the jailor. The authorities are investigating the matter”, The Hindu noted.

A report by Dainik Jagran has revealed that this might be a case of political rivalry as Bajrangi was also set to fight elections from the Jaunpur seat. It is being suspected that the leader against whom Bajrangi was contesting elections allegedly paid an amount of Rs 10 crore to Rathi. Bajrangi’s wife has also lodged a case against him.

Conspiracies

Exactly 10 days before his murder, his wife Seema held a press conference claiming that the Special Task Force (STF) was conspiring to kill him. The Wire revealed that Seema also mentioned that one of the prisoners earlier also tried poisoning his food on the STF’s directions.

Vikas Srivastav, Munna Bajrangi’s lawyer said, “this is a cooked-up story. It is obviously false. The police had planned this murder long ago. They are now claiming that Rathi and Bajrangi had a long-standing animosity, which is not true.”

Also, it noted that both the gangsters’ gangs operated in separate areas, with Rathi’s in western UP and Uttarakhand, while Bajrangi operating mostly in eastern UP. He used to pick up and extort money from doctors and businessmen.

Futhermore, it has also been revealed that three bullets fired into the mafia don’s body were done 15 minutes after his death. The Wire spoke to a forensic expert who said, “This is a worrying discovery which clearly points to foul play. It indicates the involvement of more than one person.”

The wife Seema further alleged that he was brought from Jhansi to Baghpat, without any appropriate paper work. She said, “He was only brought here for this purpose. Usually, under trials are kept in the police lines. But, he was taken to the jail because the police wanted to kill him there.”

Additional Director General (ADG) Meerut Zone, Prashant Kumar in defence said, “Bajrangi was killed inside jail which doesn’t come under UP police’s jurisdiction. Secondly, it was UP police which brought him safely from Jhansi to Baghpat as a part of a judicial procedure. If the police had really wanted to kill him, it would have done that on the way from Jhansi to Baghpat. But we ensured his safety.”

Controverisal Remarks

BJP MLA Surendra Singh from Bairia, Ballia district, called it an act of ‘god’ and ‘divine justice’. The DNA quoted him as saying, “The terror has to end someday. Sunil Rathi played the role of the God to execute Munna Bajrangi. It is God’s rule that the perpetrator of the crime will be eliminated one day by someone. It was God’s wish that Sunil Rathi did this job to put an end to Munna Bajrangi’s terror. Munna Bajrangi has been killed under God’s natural law. There could be a delay in seeking action against such criminals under the law but God has his own ways to ensure justice prevails. He prompted Sunil Rathi to make Munna Bajrangi pay for crimes he had committed.”

Who was Munna Bajrangi?

Munna Bajrangi (Prem Prakash Singh) has been a criminal with over 40 murders in his name. He infamously killed MLA Krishnanand Rai (2005) and another BJP leader Ramchandra Singh. He was backed by another gangster, Mukhtar Ansari who later turned into a politician. A bounty of seven lakh rupees was placed on his head.

He contested the Uttar Pradesh Legislative elections as a joint candidate from Apna Dal and Peace Party and came third with 12% votes.

Some Statistics

The Wire noted that since Yogi Adityanath has taken over, encounters have been very common. Over 2,000 encounters have happened, killing 61 till now and injuring over 600.

However, the effect this has had on crimes is almost reverse. 3,704 incidents of rape were reported while the figures in SP’s rule between April 2016 and January 2017 was 2,943. Kidnappings have also increased from 3,000 to 13,226.