‘No bullet wounds on farmers’ bodies’

LUCKNOW: The post-mortem report of the farmers killed in the Lakhimpur Kheri incident shows that there were no bullet injuries on any of the bodies, and that all four died due to shock, excessive bleeding and haemorrhage, said SN Sabat, officiating additional director general of police (Lucknow Zone), on Tuesday.

HT has not seen a copy of the post-mortem reports.

The findings, experts say, are consistent with deaths arising from injuries, such as those caused in an automobile accident, although it isn’t known whether the reports themselves point to the farmers being run over by a vehicle, as indicated in an unauthenticated video that has emerged.

Sabat added that the family of one of the dead farmers are not satisfied with the autopsy report and that a re-examination of the body was in progress.

The four farmers lost their lives after allegedly being run over by a vehicle belonging to Ajay Mishra Teni, the Union minister of state for home. While Mishra himself was not present during the incident, farmers allege his son Ashish Mishra was – an allegation denied by the Mishras – and that he escaped.

The farmers had gathered to protest against UP deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to Banbirpur, but more to express their ire at a comment made by Mishra a few days ago on how he would have dealt with farmers protesting three farm laws passed by the Union government.

After the vehicle ran over the protestors, it is alleged that some of the latter pulled out the occupants and lynched some of them, apart from torching two of the vehicles.

The post-mortem report of four others, including Union minister of state Mishra’s driver Hari Om Mishra, journalist Raman Kashyap, and BJP worker Shubham Mishra, revealed injuries consistent with a severe beating.