SP worker shot dead by cops in Kanpur; sub-inspector arrested

A 40-year-old man was chased and shot dead by cops, late on Friday night, in an open field where he was playing cards with others in Bhadras village of Ghatampur area, police said on Saturday. The family had claimed that some policemen arrived and shot him dead from a close range.

After investigations, police arrested sub-inspector Prem Veer Singh who had conducted the raid in Bhadras village on Friday night, when the incident happened.

SP Kanpur (rural) Brijesh Shrivastava said the SI accompanied constable Deepanshu who fired at Pappu Bajpai from his official weapon. The weapon has been seized and sent for forensics. The constable has been attached to police lines as a punishment as he did not inform the superiors about the incident, SP said.

Pappu Bajpai, 40, was an active member of the Samajwadi Party (SP). Some eyewitnesses had corroborated the family’s line and said they saw a sub-inspector on a motorcycle picking up two shooters (cops) after the incident. A cartridge shell of 0.38 bore pistol was also recovered, from the crime scene, which is prohibited and used only by police personnel, officials said.

As Ghatampur will hold a poll on November 3, the killing of Bajpai started generating enough political heat in the district. The SP leaders had sought the arrest of the policemen involved in the crime. The Congress also met the senior officials seeking ballistic tests of all weapons issued to the cops.

BJP minister Chandrika Upadhyaya met the family members and assured transparent investigation and action.

SP Srivastava said the villagers had alleged the role of the sub-inspector and a constable in the killing. The police investigated their involvement and other possibilities.

According to the eyewitnesses, a group of people were playing cards and allegedly placing bets in an open field late on Friday night in Bhadras village. An eyewitness said two men showed up and a roar went that the police have arrived. People ran, but Pappu was shot, from the close range.

Another eyewitness had claimed that two cops, dressed in plain clothes, stopped him and asked him to take them to the main road without going into the village. He said the alleged policemen threatened him with the gun. On the main road, a man wearing a police uniform came on a motorcycle and took them away.

Former SP MLA Munindra Shukla and many others reached the village and alleged Pappu was murdered, as a part of the conspiracy. “He was our worker and working for the party in the elections, he was deliberately killed,” he said.

Congress delegation led by Vikas Awasthi earlier met SP (rural) and CO Ghatampur seeking ballistic tests of all the weapons issued to the policemen.

However, the police officials earlier said that it appears there was an attempt to loot the gamblers by someone, but they did not rule out the involvement of cops who routinely do this to make quick and safe money.

He (Pappu Bajpai) was our worker and working for the party (SP) in the elections, he was deliberately killed. MUNINDRA SHUKLA,

Former SP MLA