A special investigative team (SIT) constituted to investigate the alleged conspiracy to kill Uttarakhand animal husbandry minister Saurabh Bahuguna has started the probe in the matter in Sitarganj of US Nagar, officials familiar with the matter said on Sunday.
“The SIT team reached Sitarganj on Friday and started the investigation in the matter. Our local SIT will cooperate with the probe,” said senior superintendent of police (SSP), US Nagar, Manjunath TC on Sunday.
Earlier, four accused were arrested by Sitarganj police on Monday, said an official.
US Nagar police had also formed an SIT to investigate the case but an SIT at the state government level had also been constituted for a “thorough investigation”. The team is headed by special task force (STF) additional superintendent of police Swapan Kishore Singh. The team has so far checked all the documents regarding the case, the official citied above said.
The four arrested accused were identified as Hira Singh, Satnam Singh, Harbhajan Singh and Mohmmed Aziz alia Guddu, said police.
Sitarganj MLA representative Umashankar Dwivedi had lodged the first information report with the Sitarganj police station alleging that accused Hira Singh, a resident of Sisona village in Sitarganj who is lodged in Haldwani jail on theft and illegal mining charges, had a “vendetta against the cabinet minister as he considers him to be responsible for sending Singh to jail”. “He hatched a conspiracy to kill the minister,” Dwivedi had alleged.
{{/usCountry}}Sitarganj MLA representative Umashankar Dwivedi had lodged the first information report with the Sitarganj police station alleging that accused Hira Singh, a resident of Sisona village in Sitarganj who is lodged in Haldwani jail on theft and illegal mining charges, had a “vendetta against the cabinet minister as he considers him to be responsible for sending Singh to jail”. “He hatched a conspiracy to kill the minister,” Dwivedi had alleged.
{{/usCountry}}He also alleged that the accused had given a contract to Guddu for ₹20 lakh from jail to kill the minister and had also paid ₹7 lakh in advance. “Guddu has connections with Uttar Pradesh based shooters but before they could succeed in their conspiracy they were arrested,” said an official.
“Some more names can emerge in the case during the investigation,” said Manjunath.
“The investigation is in its initial stage. We are gathering evidence,” said special task force (STF) additional superintendent of police Swapan Kishore Singh.