4 cops suspended for ‘planting’ pistol in youth’s car in U.P.’s Bulandshahr

SSP Bulandshahr suspends 4 policemen for planting weapon in car. Car owner sent to jail, later granted bail. Inquiry ongoing. CCTV footage missing.

Senior superintendent of police (SSP), Bulandshahr, Shlok Kumar has suspended four policemen after a purported video of an incident in which they were seen removing a weapon from a motorcycle and ‘planting’ it in a car went viral on social media on Monday. The incident occurred in Shikarpur police station area of Bulandshahr.

In a purported video, the cops were seen removing a weapon from a motorcycle and ‘planting’ it in a car. (For Representation)

Those suspended included station house officer, Shikarpur police station, Rajesh Chaturvedi; sub-inspector Shubham Choudhary, constables Dharmendra and Sunil Kumar. After the accused policemen’s alleged wrongdoing, the car owner was sent to jail on charges of keeping an illegal weapon.

Two home guards are also visible in the purported video and recommendation for action against them has been sent to their senior officer. Bulandshahr’s superintendent of police, crime, Rakesh Kumar Mishra conducted initial inquiry into the incident after its video surfaced and submitted his report to the SSP.

The SSP said a departmental inquiry had been ordered against the accused cops after their suspension and further action would be initiated on the basis of the inquiry report. SP(crime) Rakesh Kumar Mishra said the owner of the car has been identified as Amit, a youth hailing from a nearby village.

“He was sent to jail after an illegal weapon was recovered from his car and later the court granted him bail,” said Mishra. Cops could be seen in the video taking out a weapon probably a country-made pistol wrapped in a white piece of cloth from the basket of a motorcycle and thereafter ‘planting’ it in the car after opening its front door.

Meanwhile, the SSP said footage of the recording just before the incident and after the incident was found missing. “The owner of the shop on whose CCTV camera the incident was captured informed police that the recording just before and after the incident was missing,” the SSP said and added that a detailed investigation will help in revealing the facts about the incident.