After the failed police raid on July 3, questions were raised about gangster Vikas Dubey’s alleged links with some in the police department, as well as politicians across parties. These questions will remain unanswered now.
In a purported video circulated on social media, Dubey is heard naming two BJP MLAs, and saying that he has links with them and some other local party leaders. Photographs of Dubey with a senior Congress leader also surfaced on social media
There were also photographs of a local businessman in Kanpur, who was allegedly Dubey’s close aide and handled his finances, with former Kanpur SSP Anant Deo Tiwari. This businessman, who once owned a tea shop, is now in police custody.
On July 7, Tiwari was transferred to the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) in Moradabad sector, following reports of a purported letter written to him by Deputy SP Devendra Kumar Mishra on the alleged links between Dubey and a local police station head. Mishra was among the eight policemen killed in the raid in Bikru village on July 3. The reported letter, which also warned of a serious incident, could not be found in official records.
The station officer of Chaubepur, Vinay Tiwari, and Sub-Inspector Krishna Kumar Sharma, who are suspected to have tipped off Dubey on the raid to arrest him, have been arrested on charges of conspiracy. Earlier this week, all the 68 personnel posted at the Chaubepur police station were removed.
Besides the local Chaubepur police station, Dubey was also reported to have links with police personnel at the Shivrajpur, Bilhaur and Bithoor police stations in Kanpur Nagar and Shivli police station in Kanpur Dehat.
In 2001, he is alleged to have chased a BJP leader, Santosh Shukla, who then had minister of state rank in UP, inside Shivli police station and shot him dead in broad daylight. The licence of the rifle which he allegedly used has not been cancelled till date. Four years later, Dubey was acquitted; the gunner and personal staff of the murdered man gave statements in Dubey’s favour.
The 62 cases against Dubey, including five cases of murder and eight cases of attempt to murder, are not mentioned in ‘Register No. 8’ — a log of all cases — at the Chaubepur police station. And despite the cases against him, Dubey, history sheeter number 149-A at Chaubepur police station, was never listed among the top 25 criminals in the state.
