Deoria Clash Fallout: Dist authorities suspend 12 firearm licences in Fatehpur village

This unprecedented action was triggered by a recent group clash incident in the village, resulting in the tragic deaths of six people from two families.

GORAKHPUR In a sweeping action, Deoria district authorities have cancelled 12 firearm licences in Fatehpur village under Rudrapur police station in Deoria. The move comes as a response to a list provided by SP Deoria Sankalp Sharma, indicating that the individuals on the list lacked valid reasons for holding firearm licences.

Representative pic (PTI)

The list, compiled by SP Sankalp Sharma, prompted the cancellation of nine licences on Tuesday evening, while three others were suspended five days ago, as confirmed by District Magistrate Deoria, Akhand Partap Singh.

This unprecedented action was triggered by a recent group clash incident in the village, resulting in the tragic deaths of six people from two families. In the aftermath, the police identified 17 individuals who had insufficient justification for holding firearm licences. These included the licences of the deceased zila panchayat member Prem Chand Yadav, as well as other suspects in the incident, such as Anirudh Yadav and Abhay Yadav.

Following this incident, the police filed a case against 27 named individuals and 57 unnamed people based on a complaint from Shobhita Dubey, the daughter of the late Satya Prakash Dubey. Presently, 21 named accused are in jail.

District unit president of the SP, Vyas Yadav, and secretary Hirday Narayan Jaiswal condemned the district police for targeting SP workers and hinted at launching an agitation against the police and district authorities after Dussehra. They also noted that the Allahabad High Court had issued a stay order against the demolition of Prem Chand Yadav’s house.