Bikru shootout: Four years on, efforts to deliver justice lose momentum

Dubey was apprehended on July 9 in Ujjain after five of his key associates were killed in separate shootouts. While being transported to Kanpur, the vehicle carrying Dubey overturned near Sachendi.

KANPUR: Four years after gangster Vikas Dubey and his accomplices brutally killed eight policemen during an arrest attempt, efforts to deliver swift justice seem to have lost momentum. The special Bikru cell, established to handle the 80 criminal cases related to the incident, is now non-operational, with its office locked at the police lines for months. The cases, originally intended for a fast-track court, are currently with the anti-dacoity court in Kanpur Dehat. Moreover, four out of the eight families of the slain policemen have not received the promised employment opportunities.

As the police attempted to breach this barrier, Dubey and his associates attacked from three different directions, opening fire on the officers. (Sourced)

On the night of July 2 and July 3, 2020, police conducted a raid in Bikru village to arrest gangster Vikas Dubey, who had a criminal history of 64 cases. Dubey was tipped off about the raid by the local police. He deployed 40 heavily armed men and strategically placed an earthmover to block the village’s only entry point. As the police attempted to breach this barrier, Dubey and his associates attacked from three different directions, opening fire on the officers.

Following the ambush on the night of July 2-3, 2020, in Bikru village, Circle officer Bilhaur Devendra Mishra, station officer Shivrajpur Mahesh Yadav, sub-inspector Anup Singh, Nebu Lal, constable Jitendra Pal Singh, Sultan Singh, Rahul Kumar, and Babloo Kumar were killed. Three other policemen sustained serious injuries in the attack.

Dubey was apprehended on July 9 in Ujjain after five of his key associates were killed in separate shootouts. While being transported to Kanpur, the vehicle carrying Dubey overturned near Sachendi. In an attempt to escape, Dubey was killed.

When queried about the status of the cases and the cell, DCP West Vijay Dhull stated that he needed to verify the current situation. All cases were currently under the jurisdiction of the anti-dacoity court. Hearings had been underway in most cases, resulting in the conviction of 23 individuals under the Gangster Act on September 5, 2023. Seven accused were acquitted due to a lack of evidence against them, he said.

Similarly, the families of constable Sultan Singh, sub-inspector Mahesh Yadav, Nebu Lal, and Jitendra Pal Singh have not received employment within the police department, unlike others. Deputy SP Mishra’s daughter, Vaishnavi, was appointed as an OSD within six months while constable Rahul Kumar’s wife secured a job in 2023.

However, for the families of these four policemen, the department has imposed a condition requiring them to pass a physical test first. Urmila Singh, Sultan Singh’s wife, expressed frustration, stating, “I was denied the job because I could not clear the physical test. In contrast, at least two people were given jobs directly. In our case, all rules and regulations are being strictly enforced. I challenged this decision in court, and although the court ruled in my favour, nothing has changed.”

“I have given up, raising my nine-year-old daughter with falling health is more important than fighting this battle,” she added.